Andhra Pradesh to ban social media for under-16s like Australia? Minister Nara Lokesh says, 'I believe we need to...'

Andhra Pradesh is mulling a ban on social media for kids under 16, state IT minister Nara Lokesh revealed to Bloomberg on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The minister stated that the southern state is taking a leaf out of Australia’s recent direction to ban social media for kids under 16.

“As a state, we are studying Australia’s under-16 law, and yes, I believe we need to create a strong legal enactment,” Nara Lokesh said.

The Australian government has banned TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, and Threads for under-16s, stating that it will reduce the negative impact of social media's "design features that encourage young people to spend more time on screens, while also serving up content that can harm their health and wellbeing".

Echoing similar sentiments, Lokesh stated that youngsters below a certain age should be kept away from using such platforms as they do not fully comprehend the content they are reading or watching.

“As a state, we are studying Australia’s under-16 law, and yes, I believe we need to create a strong legal enactment," he said. Lokesh said he strongly felt that youngsters under a certain age should not be on social media “because they don’t understand what they are seeing."

The ban does not impose penalties on children or their parents. Instead, it places responsibility on social media companies, requiring them to take “reasonable steps” to verify that users are at least 16. Platforms that fail to comply could face fines of up to Aus$49.5 million for the most serious breaches.

The law also sets out certain exemptions. Major platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok fall under the ban, along with streaming services like Kick and Twitch. However, some popular apps — including Roblox, Pinterest and WhatsApp — are currently excluded from the restrictions.