AP Govt Mulls Guidelines to Keep Minors Off Social Media
29 Jan 2026 2:27 AM IST29 Jan 2026 2:27 AM IST
Lokesh advised officials to study the regulations in countries like Singapore, Australia, Malaysia and France vis-à-vis children’s access to social media
Ministers Nara Lokesh, Vangalapudi Anita and Y Satya Kumar Yadav at the meeting on the control of cannabis and narcotics at the Secretariat on Wednesday. Photo BY ARRANGEMENT.
Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh government is framing guidelines to keep minors away from social media platforms.
Education and electronics minister Nara Lokesh stated this while chairing a meeting of the Group of Ministers (GoM) on strengthening accountability on social media, on Wednesday.
He advised officials to study the regulations in countries like Singapore, Australia, Malaysia and France vis-à-vis children’s access to social media. The rules must be formulated in line with the Supreme Court guidelines.
Civil supplies minister Nadendla Manohar informed the meeting that, in Malaysia, access to social media is permitted only for individuals above 16 years through e-KYC linked to digital ID and passport details.
The GoM unanimously agreed for the need to keep children away from social media, while directing officials to examine age-limit laws in various countries before finalising the policy.
Lokesh called for stringent action against habitual offenders who posted fake news or made hateful remarks on social media based on caste, religion or region. He suggested inviting compliance officers from platforms such as Google, Meta and Twitter to the next GoM meeting for discussions.
The meeting decided to issue a notification for appointing a state-level adjudicating officer under Section 46 of the IT Act to proceed against those indulging in hate speech online. Officials said action is also being taken in select cases through the central government’s Sahyog portal.
Issues such as curbing cyber offences, dealing with cyber law offenders and establishing cyber police stations were also discussed.
The meeting was attended by information minister Kolusu Parthasarathi, home minister Vangalapudi Anitha, health minister Satyakumar Yadav, senior officials from the information and legal departments and the cyber crime wing .
He advised officials to study the regulations in countries like Singapore, Australia, Malaysia and France vis-à-vis children’s access to social media. The rules must be formulated in line with the Supreme Court guidelines.
Civil supplies minister Nadendla Manohar informed the meeting that, in Malaysia, access to social media is permitted only for individuals above 16 years through e-KYC linked to digital ID and passport details.
The GoM unanimously agreed for the need to keep children away from social media, while directing officials to examine age-limit laws in various countries before finalising the policy.
Lokesh called for stringent action against habitual offenders who posted fake news or made hateful remarks on social media based on caste, religion or region. He suggested inviting compliance officers from platforms such as Google, Meta and Twitter to the next GoM meeting for discussions.
The meeting decided to issue a notification for appointing a state-level adjudicating officer under Section 46 of the IT Act to proceed against those indulging in hate speech online. Officials said action is also being taken in select cases through the central government’s Sahyog portal.
Issues such as curbing cyber offences, dealing with cyber law offenders and establishing cyber police stations were also discussed.
The meeting was attended by information minister Kolusu Parthasarathi, home minister Vangalapudi Anitha, health minister Satyakumar Yadav, senior officials from the information and legal departments and the cyber crime wing .
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
Next Story