Modi ally proposes social media ban for India's teens as global debate grows

By Sarita Chaganti Singh

NEW DELHI, Jan 31 (Reuters) - An ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proposed a bill to ban social media for children, as the world's biggest market for Meta and YouTube joins a global debate on the impact of social media on young people's health and safety.

"Not only are our children becoming addicted to social media, but India is also one of the world's largest producers of data for foreign platforms," lawmaker L.S.K. Devarayalu told Reuters on Friday.

"Based on this data, these companies are creating advanced AI systems, effectively turning Indian users into unpaid data providers, while the strategic and economic benefits are reaped elsewhere," he said.

Australia last month became the first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking access in a move welcomed by many parents and child advocates but criticised by major technology companies and free-speech advocates. France's National Assembly this week backed legislation to ban children under 15 from social media, while Britain, Denmark and Greece are studying the issue.

Facebook operator Meta META.O, YouTube-parent Alphabet GOOGL.O and X did not respond on Saturday to emails seeking comment on the Indian legislation. Meta has said it backs laws for parental oversight but that "governments considering bans should be careful not to push teens toward less safe, unregulated sites."

India's IT ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

India, the world's second-biggest smartphone market with 750 million devices and a billion internet users, is a key growth market for social media apps and does not set a minimum age for access.

Devarayalu's 15-page Social Media (Age Restrictions and Online Safety) Bill, which is not public but was seen by Reuters, says no one under 16 "shall be permitted to create, maintain, or hold" a social media account and those found to have one should have them disabled.

"We are asking that the entire onus of ensuring users' age be placed on the social media platforms," Devarayalu said.

The government's chief economic adviser attracted attention on Thursday by saying India should draft policies on age-based access limits to tackle "digital addiction".

Devarayalu's legislation is a private member's bill - not proposed to parliament by a federal minister - but such bills often trigger debates in parliament and influence lawmaking.

He is from the Telugu Desam Party, which governs the southern state Andhra Pradesh and is vital to Modi's coalition government.

(Reporting by Sarita Chaganti Singh; Editing by Aditya Kalra and William Mallard)

((Email: aditya.kalra@tr.com; X: @adityakalra;))