While the Karnataka government is considering a proposal to ban mobile phone use for children under 16, the debate in homes and classrooms in Bengaluru is less about the devices themselves and more about the habits, dependencies and fears that have grown around them.
The move comes in response to growing concerns among parents and teachers about compulsive phone use among teenagers. However, in a city where school notices are circulated on WhatsApp, and parents track their commute through ride-hailing apps, the prospect of a blanket ban has left many anxious.
“It would be difficult to imagine this situation,” said Sumaya John, a mother of a 15-year-old boy. “I work and use WhatsApp to communicate with my child and Uber’s tracking feature to check her location while she’s on the go. My child has had a phone since he was 13.”
Another parent, Jyothi Sumit, described the phone as a safety rope. “When I’m at work or when my son goes out to play, he has to take his phone with him, otherwise we won’t be able to contact him. It’s also more convenient, otherwise I’ll have to physically go everywhere with him in case of an emergency.”
Privacy and implementation challenge
Meanwhile, a deeper question lurks: How would such a ban be enforced? Verifying age without violating privacy would be risky, said Pransh Prakash, co-founder of the Center for Internet and Society and principal counsel at Anekaanta, a law and policy consulting firm.
“It is not technically possible to discover a person’s age without collecting identity information,” he said. “It is technically possible to rely on an existing ID (which captures age) and design a ‘zero-knowledge proof’ system around it so that those asked to verify age do not have to collect identity. But the authentication service would necessarily need to collect identity. So, even this creates new risks for data breaches, data leaks, and misuse of personal data.”
In-clinic: When use turns into a disorder
If the challenge of implementation is enormous, the distress driving the proposal is visible in clinics and classrooms.
The parents of a 14-year-old boy are starting to notice changes while switching to online education. What started as difficulty concentrating has deepened over the past year and a half into an almost complete preoccupation with the video game Fortnite. He became irritable when his internet speed faltered, and would sometimes smash his phone or iPad and throw household items out of frustration. He stayed up all night playing and skipping meals. After a clinical evaluation, he was diagnosed with Internet Gaming Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
At the Health Use of Technology Clinic at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuroscience, Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma, a professor of clinical psychology who heads the program, said such cases are no longer rare.
He said: “Psychological disturbances occur when the devices are removed, and appear in the form of aggression. There have been cases where parents have complained that children are becoming violent and breaking things or scratching people. They are also threatening to harm themselves.”
He added that children are increasingly retreating to solitary comfort with their phones. “Parents bring their children when they notice lifestyle changes, such as lack of interest in school and physical activities, and behavioral problems.”
The clinic now sees approximately 25 cases a week, many of which involve young teenagers. Dr. Sharma said that addiction in this age group is most often associated with online gaming and video browsing.
However, he is not calling for a ban alone. “Steps should be taken to raise awareness among children, which will help build internal reasons within them where they can acknowledge the benefits of this ban. Steps should also be taken to strengthen the parental support system by forming parent support groups. Training should be given to at least one teacher in every school regarding digital detox. They will also be able to provide counseling and help children cope.”
He pointed to a global group intervention program the clinic runs with 700 12-year-olds. After five sessions, participants showed measurable improvements in knowledge, attitudes and healthy digital habits, he said. “The main thing most kids have is that there’s nothing else fun about their lifestyle, and that needs to be fixed.”
Classrooms face abuse
And in schools across Bengaluru, officials say they are already grappling with abuse. The manager of a branch on Kanakapura Road described students secretly bringing their phones to campus to film stunts on social media, including the “blackout challenge,” and instances of cyberbullying, especially while riding buses.
“Students are abusing more than they are using, often with parental approval,” she said. “So the abuse outweighs any real need for cell phones.”
She also pointed to chronic sleep deprivation among pupils who watch age-inappropriate content at night. “They know they can’t see all this stuff in the daytime because there are people walking around, so they’ll start seeing at night, which results in a late night sleep.”
Indira Shrikumar, a retired coordinator at another branch of the same school, said the increase in phone dependency accelerated after the Covid-19 pandemic. “Children can use mobile phones even if they enforce the ban, and it is up to the parents to monitor them,” she said.
A tool for learning and self-expression
However, for some students, the device is a gateway rather than a trap. Anish Kumar, 12, uses his phone to clarify lessons and complete homework. “My parents can’t afford a laptop, so I don’t want mobile phone use to be banned for me,” he said.
Lavanya Shah, 14, credits social media with nurturing her art. “I love having social media because I post my artistic content and get many likes, and it motivates me to draw more. If they ban cell phones and social media, I will be completely disconnected from the things I love. I also follow channels that keep me updated with the news because I love participating in debate competitions.”
Dr Trista Ramamurthy, founder of Ekya Schools and vice chair of CMR Group of Foundations, said the tension reflects a broader truth about the dual nature of technology.
“We’ve seen both distraction and distraction. Unguided use can erode real attention spans. But we’ve also seen students using their devices to produce powerful documentaries, prototype code, run social impact campaigns, and pursue independent research beyond textbooks,” she said. “The difference is in intentional scaffolding. When children are taught digital citizenship and self-regulation, technology amplifies the potential. Without guidance, it fragments focus. Therefore, the responsibility falls on adult leadership, not the device itself.”
Dr. Sharma echoed this opinion, noting that many children complain that their parents are too busy with their own screens. To make any restrictions effective, families must model digital discipline, he said. The clinic is exploring the possibility of reaching out to gynecologists to counsel young mothers on exposure to technology from childhood, including resource kits on early digital use.
