3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 10, 2026 12:55 PM IST
The Allahabad High Court sought a response from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and other authorities on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a ban on minors’ access to the online gaming platform Roblox and similar platforms, citing concerns about children’s psychological well-being, online safety, and exposure to harmful content.
A division bench of Justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla was hearing a plea filed by Rani Sing, a practicing lawyer, against the Union of India, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and other concerned respondents.
The petition raises concerns over the risk posed by the online gaming platform Roblox and similar platforms to children. The plea also seeks the formation of an expert committee to assess the risks posed by such platforms and recommend protective measures.
The petitioner further prayed for a direction to the authorities to conduct awareness drives in schools and educational institutions to sensitise children, teachers, and parents regarding the potential psychological, behavioural, and safety risks associated with online gaming platforms, including but not limited to Roblox.
It also suggested constituting a high-level committee of child psychologists, cyber experts, AI moderators, and law enforcement authorities to assess risks and recommend immediate protective measures.
Justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla seek a response from the Centre.
The impact of online gaming
The impact is seen on their physical health and well-being, with appetite and sleep being increasingly compromised. Choices about what is good or not are influenced strongly by the content they are consuming. They experience inordinate distress, which they experience as extremely difficult to modulate when they need to contain the time they spend or have to engage in a different activity.
A study conducted by the Department of Psychiatry, PGIMER, Chandigarh, has revealed that 15.9 per cent of youth suffer from internet addiction, which significantly contributes to depression and anxiety among young people.
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Dr Aseem Mehra, one of the authors of the study, pointed out that with everything available online, people often feel less need for real human interaction, unknowingly becoming victims of addiction. Not only youth, but even younger children are now visiting clinics due to gaming addiction, which is also a part of internet addiction.
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