The warning bell of digital addiction
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A fact revealed in the Economic Survey for 2025-26, presented in Parliament by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday, January 29, calls for the immediate attention of the nation and its people. The Survey reveals that children and young people across the country are increasingly falling prey to severe digital addiction, which is dangerously eroding the mental health of the youth, the country’s most valuable human resource. The report states that this has already begun to adversely affect academic performance and productivity in workplaces. Persistent lack of concentration and inadequate sleep are producing negative outcomes in both education and employment, ultimately causing damage to the economy itself. Excessive screen time among children and young people weakens overall human bonds and, in the process, erodes social capital, while also aggravating mental health problems. The report says that, just as harmful food products containing artificial colours and chemical additives, known as ultra-processed foods (UPF), which have become part of the modern lifestyle, lead to physical ailments such as obesity and metabolic disorders, digital addiction in the present social environment is causing serious mental deterioration. This is not a situation that the nation and its people have come to unknowingly. It is the flip side of the gains we celebrate in our leap towards a developed India and a new Digital India. The present situation is such that the benefits of the progress we have achieved flow outward, while the harms remain within. In India, the enrichment of human resources is taking place largely in the digital sector and its allied fields. However, the youth capable of using the opportunities thus created in innovative and creative ways are leaving the country. Brain drain across various sectors is, indeed, a subject of active discussion nationwide. On the other hand, the darker side of digital technology has trapped the younger generation in a dangerous snare.
What the administration is showing far greater attention and urgency in addressing the so-called “digital hunger” than in providing food to the starving poor suffering in destitution. Today, India is the world’s largest consumer of data. According to figures released by The Times of India three months ago, the average per capita monthly data consumption stands at 36 GB. India is a country where smartphones and data plans are available at prices far cheaper than those in the United States, Western European countries and China. According to estimates by the Swedish company Ericsson, India’s average per capita monthly data consumption will reach 65 GB within the next five years. While India had 250 million internet connections in 2014, the number rose to 970 million in 2024. In 2024, Indians spent one lakh crore hours on smartphones. The central government is now considering remedies. CBSE students are being provided guidance on internet usage. The Ministry of Education has created the Pragnya Framework to raise awareness about screen time. In 2022, the national mental health helpline, called Tele-MANAS, attended over 35 lakhs calls. Online gaming has been banned in certain instances. Like the digital addiction centres in Kerala, states such as Andhra Pradesh and Goa are also considering various regulations. The worrying situation stems from the fact that the administration lacks the foresight to anticipate and address the consequences of progress, rather than merely standing opposed to it. Corporate conglomerates, driven solely by the pursuit of profit, are content as long as their products sell. However, a vibrant nation and its people require vigilant care on all fronts. That is the message raised by concerns about digital addiction.
