POLICY MOMENT: CASE FOR SOCIAL MEDIA AGE LIMIT

Karnataka’s plan to limit social media for children reflects rising concern among parents and teachers about online distraction and calls for a wider national discussion and action

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N the opening minutes of Kar-nataka Chief Minister Sid-daramaiah’s record 17th budget speech a few days ago, he bowled a ‘doosra’. This ‘doos-ra’ was really different in the Indian context and a first to be put out there formally in the realm of policy-making. He made the big announcement that the state government is planning to ban the use of social media by children below the age of 16. On the very same day we hear of the Chan-drababu Naidu government in Andhra Pradesh wanting to set the age limit of a similar move for children below 13. The Goa government has in the past spoken of similar measures. In many ways, Siddaramaiah avare has set the cat among the pigeons of this debate. In fact, he has enshrined it in his budget speech.

The budget was presented in Ben-galuru, known as India’s IT capital. A city which has led the way when it comes to the making of the best pieces of software actionable for industry across the world. Bengaluru is most certainly the capital of the heritage IT-enabled services industry and is fast emerging to be at the cutting edge of new technologies, AI and hopefully quantum computing included. Even as the city and its heritage IT folk shiver and shudder under the brazen spread. and impact of AI, here comes a consumer-centric move that will have social media companies worried. While the stocks of IT companies get a battering on the bourses for the moment due to AI, social media companies are going to be up and about putting their public relation mechanisms at play to counter the results that an efficient ban on social media for kids could bring.