New Delhi, March 6 -- Karnataka, home to the tech hub of Bengaluru, will ban the use of social media by those under the age of 16, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Friday. The state became the first in India to do so.

Siddaramaiah made the announcement while presenting the 2026-27 State Budget in the Vidhana Soudha on Friday, March 6.

He said in his budget speech, "With the objective of preventing adverse effects of increasing mobile usage on children, usage of social media will be banned for children under the age of 16."

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from MINT....