The Andhra Pradesh government has constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM) to examine the possibility of restricting or banning access to certain social media platforms for children below 16 years, Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha said on Friday.

The GoM, headed by IT Minister Nara Lokesh and comprising ministers including Anitha and Health Minister Satya Kumar, will study models being followed by various states and countries to identify the most suitable framework for Andhra Pradesh. The move comes amid growing concerns over social media abuse and its impact on children.

Referring to international examples, Anitha noted that the Australian government has introduced legislation setting 16 years as the minimum age for social media use and making platforms responsible for ensuring compliance.

“Not only the Australian model, we are studying various models being implemented in the entire country and also worldwide. We will get a report on how to control social media abuse and also how far the state can implement it,” Anita told PTI.

She said the report, along with its recommendations, would be shared with the central government. “Either a ban or restriction. How to control it is the main task,” she added.

Citing the example of Facebook, the minister pointed out that while several platforms seek users’ age details, they often do not verify the authenticity of the date of birth entered. “What we feel is these social media platforms should ask the user to upload age proof documents so that their authenticity is verified,” she opined, adding that such measures had emerged during earlier discussions.

The GoM is expected to submit its recommendations within a month after consultations with Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.

The development follows remarks by Minister Lokesh at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he reportedly said the government was considering restricting social media usage for children below 16 years, a statement that was welcomed by the ruling Telugu Desam Party.