After Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh plans social media ban for children under 13

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, on Friday initiated a discussion in the state Assembly regarding the ideal age cutoff for restricting social media usage among minors, saying that social media will be banned for children aged below 13 years.

According to a source, the CM stated that "we have received a suggestion to ban social media for children aged below 13 years. Definitely, we will ensure there will be no access to children aged below 13 years of age in the coming 90 days. A discussion is going on whether it should be 13 years or 16 years. If everyone agrees on it, we will decide."

With the move, Andhra Pradesh becomes the second state in India to ban social media for children after Karnataka.

Why are countries across the world banning social media for children?

The proposed measure reflects growing concerns among policymakers about the influence of social media on children’s mental health, behaviour and online safety.

The ban is expected to curb social media addiction and its impact on children’s mental health.

The concern is not limited to national boundaries but is being discussed across the world. Australia was the first nation to take such a step in late 2025 over concerns regarding children’s health.

Countries including Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Malaysia, Spain and the United Kingdom have also banned social media for children.

Naidu also said that the Andhra Pradesh government is considering a new population management policy that includes financial incentives to encourage families to have more children.

Speaking in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, he presented the state’s proposed population management policy and said that currently about 58 per cent of families have only one child, around 2.17 lakh families have two children, and nearly 62 lakh families have three or more children.

He also noted that around three lakh families have only one child instead of two, while another three lakh families have more than two children.

To address this, the government is proposing financial incentives for childbirth. Under the plan, parents who have a parent who has a second child or more will receive Rs 25,000 at the time of delivery.

(With inputs from ANI)