February 2026 has been marked by circumstances and cross-currents. There were some wins—the Union Budget designed for a Viksit Bharat, and announcements that India and the US have finally reached some sort of understanding, after over a year of seesawing, due to wildly swinging tariffs.
But, as a mother, the news that hit me the hardest went straight to my heart. The devastating early-morning suicide of three sisters in Ghaziabad, who fell to their deaths in each other’s arms, left the entire country reeling in shock. It was more than I could take, and dreadfully heartbreaking to see young lives pointlessly snuffed out.
As murkier details began to emerge, I got thinking about the havoc that unlimited access to technology and the dark depths of the vortex that is the internet can wreak on vulnerable minds.
Suicide notes recovered on the spot by police officials revealed a tragic tale of social isolation and digital addiction. The girls were ‘almost continuously’ playing online games for the last few years, since COVID times, according to the father. Neighbours reported that these children were hardly seen playing in the society’s playground and open spaces and were believed to have chosen to remain confined to their room. Reportedly, the girls had deluded themselves into believing they were Korean princesses and were unhappy being Indian, and had even assigned themselves Korean-sounding names. It remains to be seen what nutritional and vitamin deficiencies existed due to lack of access to sunshine and exercise.
Increase in access to the internet
As of 2025–2026, the average cost of mobile internet in India is among the lowest globally, estimated at approximately Rs 9 to Rs 14 per GB (less than $ 0.12) and less than a cup of tea in my part of the country. This extreme affordability of internet data, down from over Rs 250 in 2014, is driven by intense competition, widespread 4G/5G adoption, and a massive user base consuming roughly 27.5 GB monthly.
According to a Deloitte report, India is expected to have 1 billion smartphone users by 2026.
A study in January revealed some eye-opening data. Access to a smartphone at home is very high for persons under the age of 16; over 82 per cent of teenagers know how to use a smartphone, and 90 per cent of rural children aged 14-18 have access to a smartphone. A significant portion (76 per cent-80 per cent) of children with access to smartphones use them primarily for entertainment, such as watching movies or social media, rather than education.
Is this the right use of ‘Digital India’? The question still stands: how best we need to utilise the technology for educational purposes and not allow the young people to use it as an escape mechanism.
Internet addiction and its ramifications
At the park near my office, I often observe young children sitting glued to their phones in their hands. The swings and slides remain bereft of any activity. During my childhood—and that of successive generations—playgrounds and neighbourhood parks would resonate with the sounds of children playing football, cricket, or badminton, or running around in games like catch’em catch.
These days, the neighbourhood parks are more likely to be the location for boys and girls filming reels—another dangerous trend. A few years ago, the game PUBG had invaded the psyche of many young people, and there had been news reports of multiple suicides related to the game.
In fact, there have been a large number of research papers published by academicians in India and abroad, related to the topic of Internet addiction. And the fear of being without a mobile phone has been given a clinical term. Nomophobia (no mobile phone phobia) is the irrational fear or anxiety of being without a mobile device, running out of battery, or losing signal. It acts as a behavioural addiction, triggering physical or mental symptoms like panic, sweating, and trembling. It disproportionately affects younger populations.
A number of negative psychological effects, including sleep disruption, inability to focus, increased levels of stress, mood swings, worsening academic performance, and mental health issues, including the incongruity of functioning in the real world, can be attributed to internet addiction as per numerous academic journals. “The study done by Salahuddin and Muazzam (2019) concluded that persons who develop an addiction to video games tend to lose interest in their real-life activities and instead focus solely on how to achieve more within the game.”
“The clinical, epidemiological, and neurobiological evidence on problematic gaming should not be ignored and the gaming industry should recognize that its business model has ethical as well as social responsibilities,” said another study. The above are excerpts from just two academic journals out of the scores that are available in the public domain, which discuss the extreme consequences of gaming addictions among young people. The problem is now going out of proportion.
Porn addiction
We are all horrified by the increased access to pornographic material and other age-inappropriate content made available to minors due to unfettered access to the internet.
Three teenage boys in Bhajanpura allegedly raped a six-year-old child last month! A 13-year-old, a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old committed the unspeakable crime. The Madras High Court in 2024 observed that Gen Z was grappling with porn addiction due to easy smartphone access and needed to be counselled out of it. Some experts believe that children as young as 13 are addicted to porn.
But clearly, children even younger are gaining access.
With a rise in AI-generated videos, there will be a corresponding rise in inappropriate videos generated by AI. And with rampant smartphone use, younger kids will be able to easily access age-inappropriate content.
Dissolution of Indian family values
What is the cause of this alarming rise in internet addiction? Can it be attributed to the dissolution of the Indian family system as we once knew it? As the popular saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child—and in our grandmothers’ time, it truly was an entire village that did so. Traditional joint families, with multiple generations living under one roof, passed down knowledge organically. Scriptures were taught, and religion was a way of life. Music, values, prayers—all these constituted the traditional beliefs, and the Indian systems that held the family together. At the heart of this structure was sanskaar, which refers to the “deep-seated mental impressions, values, and cultural grooming” that shape a person’s character, actions, and personality. Rooted in Indian tradition, sanskaar signifies the process of refinement through moral education, and positive habits and rites of passage, forming the foundation of a cultured life.
It is apparent that digital addiction is eroding the sanskaar of Indian youth. This addiction is also breaking human connections, leading to a shift from traditional social interactions to virtual, often antisocial behaviour. Increasing isolation due to rapid urbanisation, breakdown of traditional family systems, and increased self-absorption—all these factors have resulted in increased dependency on the internet for self-validation and entertainment, not just among the youth, but even with seniors. A common sight in every public space is that of people glued to their screens, oblivious to what is happening in the real world around them.
An online survey in 2026 revealed that 70 per cent of 57,000 parents believed that their children were addicted to screens, either through OTT platforms, or social media or online gaming. Even the WHO recognises gaming addiction as a psychological disorder.
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Banning phones for children
Spain is the latest country to call for banning access to social media for those under 16. France, meanwhile, is on the way to fast-track legislation banning social media use for under-15s, and is hoping to implement this ban before the start of the new school year in September. “Banning social media for those under 15: this is what scientists recommend, and this is what the French people are overwhelmingly calling for,” said President Emmanuel Macron. “Because their (children’s) dreams must not be dictated by algorithms.”
Finland will be implementing stringent nationwide regulations on the use of smartphones by children starting in August 2026. These concerns are driven by declining educational performance and increasing problems with mental health. No personal smartphones or social media for those under 13, and absolutely zero screen time for those under two.
Australia’s ban on social media for those under 16 has already come into effect as of early 2026. The onus of keeping children off social media is not on the children or their parents. Rather, social media platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram face hefty fines to the tune of $33M for failing to take “reasonable steps” to prevent access. There is no exception for parental consent.
What should India do?
India passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, in August 2025. The purpose was to create a national framework to promote esports and social and educational games, concurrently banning online real-money games (RMGs), regardless of skill, due to addiction and financial risks. It also established an Online Gaming Authority for oversight and imposed penalties on operators and promoters, shifting from state-level rules to a unified central law.
Yet, in the light of the Ghaziabad and the Bhajanpura incidents, and all the research conducted by academicians, clearly, this regulation is too little and too late. How do we ensure that entire generations are not destroyed by online addiction? This demands deep and personal reflection—both culturally and within the framework of Bhartiya sanskaar.
We will have to draw upon the strength of our over 10,000-year-old civilisational wisdom to tackle these monumental challenges of the 21st century and an increasingly AI-driven world—if we are to protect our future generations and save the ethos of our ancient roots.
If data is the new oil, then social media and internet-based entertainment is the new opium. Thus, the framework of policy must curb this digital opium—preventing the exploitative manipulation of the youth—while ensuring that access to education is not restricted.
Meenakashi Lekhi is a BJP leader, lawyer and social activist. Her X handle is @M_Lekhi. Views are personal.
(Edited by Ratan Priya)