India’s former G20 Sherpa and NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant on Saturday agreed with the Economic Survey’s suggestion that India needs to limit social media used on basis of age, like that in other countries including Australia.
In a social media post, Kant said, “100% agree with India’s Economic Survey that we need age limits on social media now. It’s frying kids’ brains, decreasing productivity and focus, and will result in a generation of children that are chronically online and incapable of real-world hard work.”
“This is not how we build Viksit Bharat. In fact, we should ban it outright in schools and colleges,” he added.
What did the Economic Survey 2026 say?
Flagging major concerns over the usage of social media in India, the Economic Survey noted that a digital addiction across the country stands to pose economic consequences as well.
“India’s youth are living in an intensely digital environment. While access fuels learning, jobs, and civic participation, compulsive and high-intensity use can impose real economic and social costs, ranging from lost study hours and reduced productivity to healthcare burdens and financial losses resulting from risky online behaviours,” the report said.
It flagged a mental health crisis among India’s youth, citing multiple studies in India and across the world
“Mental Health crisis is closely linked with digital addiction, which is the degrading mental health of the youth. There is a high prevalence of social media addiction among those aged 15-24, with multiple India and global studies confirming it,” it said.
“With near-universal mobile/internet use among 15-29-year-olds, access is no longer the binding constraint,” the Economic Survey added.
The Economic Survey 2025-26 has identified digital addiction as a rising problem impacting mental health of youth and adults.
In an interaction with the media on 29 January, CEA V Anantha Nageswaran said that age-based policy limits must be considered and platforms should be made responsible to enforce them.
“Policies on age-based access limits may be considered, as younger users are more vulnerable to compulsive use and harmful content,” Nageswaran told reporters.
“Platforms should be made responsible for enforcing age verification and age-appropriate defaults, particularly for social media, gambling apps, auto-play features, and targeted advertising,” he added.
The Economic Survey has called for educating families and encouraged them to promote screen-time limits, device-free hours, and shared offline activities.
The Survey noted measures by various countries, including Australia, China, and South Korea, and called for several interventions, besides ongoing efforts of various government departments.
