Lok Sabha Question No. 156 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-02-02
Subject: Impact of Internet on Mental Health of Children
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shashi Tharoor

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 156 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02.02.2024

## IMPACT OF INTERNET ON MENTAL HEALTH OF CHILDREN

## 156.   DR. SHASHI THAROOR:

Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is aware of the findings of a survey conducted by NGO Kanal and various other organisations, showing that most children who use the internet  are  fighting  mental  health  issues  like  anxiety,  depression  and  other mental illnesses, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Government has taken steps to address the impact of the internet on child's mental health;
- (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether the Government come up with interventions specific to the State of Kerala in view of the revelation in survey that the said adverse impact is highest in the State; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

(a)  to  (e):  No  sir.   Government  has  not  received  any  such  survey.   However, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), has conducted a study on 'Effects of use of mobile phones & Other devices with Internet' on School Children in 2021. The research study was exploratory in nature and quantitative techniques like the survey method, and qualitative techniques like Focused Group Discussion (FGD) were used. Three different questionnaires for survey of all major stakeholders i.e., school children, parents and teachers were used. The study report is available on NCPCR's website at the following Link -https://ncpcr.gov.in/uploads/165650458362bc410794e02\_EFFECT~1.PDF Further,  as  per  the  information  received   from  the  Ministry  of  Health  and  Family Welfare, with a view to address the burden of mental health disorders, the Government of  India  is  implementing  the  National  Mental  Health  Programme  (NMHP)  in  the country. The District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) component of the NMHP has been sanctioned for implementation in 738 districts for which support is provided to States/UTs through the National Health Mission for targeted interventions  with  the following objectives:

- i. To provide facilitative skill to class teachers to promote life skill among their students.
- ii. To  provide  the  knowledge  and  skills  to  class  teachers  to  identify  emotional conduct, scholastic and substance use problems in their students
- iii. To  provide  a  system  of  referral  for  students  with  psychological  problems  in schools to the District Mental Health Team for inputs and treatment.
- iv. To  involve  other  stakeholders  like  parents,  community  leaders  to  enhance development of adolescents etc.

In order to ensure holistic development of the adolescent population, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has been implementing the Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) since 2014. RKSK covers both school going and non-school going adolescents. It is a paradigm shift from the clinic-based services to promotion and prevention and reaching adolescents in their own environment, such as in schools, families and communities. Mental Health is one of the key thematic areas of RKSK apart  from  Sexual  and  Reproductive  Health  (SRH),  nutrition,  injuries  and  violence (including  gender-based  violence),  non-communicable  diseases  and  substance misuse.

RKSK through its interventions namely Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (AFHC), Peer Education  Programme and Adolescent Health and Wellness Days (AH&WD) focus  on  creating  awareness  on  mental  health  issues  and  providing  counselling services, involving the parents, village elders, teachers, healthcare providers and the adolescents themselves as the critical stakeholders.

Ayushman  Bharat  School  Health  &  Wellness  Programme  incorporates  'Emotional Wellbeing  and  Mental  Health'  as  a  dedicated  module.  Health  and  Wellness Ambassadors (Teachers) are trained on mental health along with other thematic areas of  the  programme to support and provide awareness to school children on mental health  and  well-being.  The  training  focuses  on  identifying  self-emotions  signs  of distress in self and others and recognizing that 'mental health and well-being' exists along a continuum. Health and Wellness Ambassadors take interactive sessions with the students and percolate the messages through weekly sessions promoting joyful learning.

Besides the above, the Government has launched a 'National Tele Mental Health Programme' on 10th October, 2022, to further improve access to quality mental health counselling and care services in the country. As on 30.01.2024, 34 States/ UTs have set up 47 Tele MANAS Cells and have started tele mental health services.  More than 6,28,000 calls have been handled on the helpline number.

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