On January 29, 2026, the Economic Survey delivered a sobering reality check to Parliament. It raised a "Red Flag," warning that India’s youth are trapped in a cycle of digital addiction. The Chief Economic Adviser went as far as calling social media "predatory" and urged for age limits and digital wellness in schools.
Yet, just 48 hours later, the Union Budget 2026 presented a jarringly different vision:
-15,000 School Labs: AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics) labs to be installed in schools and colleges.
-₹250 Crore Allocation: Dedicated to "talent development" in content creation.
-2 Million Jobs: A target to scale the “Orange Economy” by 2030.
This is more than a policy inconsistency—it is a direct clash between economic ambition and social responsibility.
Mixed Signals: One Hand Restrains, the Other Pushes:
What kind of hypocrisy is this?
On one side, the Economic Survey screams:
“Save children from digital addiction! It’s predatory!” On the other side, the Budget announces:
“Let’s open labs in 15,000 schools and officially teach reel-making and gaming content creation!”
Harshit Waghela (@Salt__to__taste) captured this contradiction perfectly:
"Today’s budget reveals a bizarre mis-prioritisation of our education system — instead of strengthening real fundamentals like maths, science, critical thinking and basic infrastructure, the government is rolling out ‘content creator labs’… as if that’s the future of education."
This is not just an Indian concern; it’s a violation of global best practices. UNESCO’s 2023 Global Education Monitoring Report delivered a stern warning to nations racing toward digitalization:
"Digital literacy must go hand-in-hand with ethics and responsibility... Decisions about technology in education should prioritize learner needs, not commercial interests."
By ignoring this, we are creating a dangerous disconnect. This mis-prioritization becomes even sharper when you realize that thousands of rural schools still struggle for basics like toilets, electricity, and qualified teachers. Against that backdrop, promising AVGC labs looks less like a "visionary move" and more like a misplaced priority that chooses dopamine over development.
Global Reality vs. India’s Approach: Skill or Soul?
Across the world, the conversation has shifted from "Digital Literacy" to "Digital Citizenship." We are no longer just teaching kids how to use tools; we are fighting to keep them from being consumed by them.
-The Addiction Epidemic: Recent OECD(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) surveys confirm that over 40% of teenagers feel addicted to social media. They aren't just using it; they are dependent on it for their self-worth.
-The Global Brake: Countries like China have doubled down on strict limits, restricting minors to just three hours of gaming per week. Even South Korea, despite being a gaming superpower, has spent years legislating "Shutdown Laws" to protect children’s sleep and mental health.
-The Indian Paradox: While the world is installing "brakes," India is hitting the "accelerator." By expanding AVGC labs without parallel safeguards, we are handing children a high-performance engine while removing the seatbelts.
We are teaching them the skill—how to create, how to hook an audience, how to manipulate algorithms—but we are neglecting the soul: the responsibility of what that content does to a society.
Sarcasm or Strategy? The Corporate Profit Loop:
A question many are asking quietly, but which deserves to be shouted:
Who truly harvests the fruit of this "Orange Economy"?
The math is simple but devastating:
More School Labs → More Student Screen Time → Massive Data Consumption → Record Profits for Telecom Giants like Jio.
It’s not just the telcos. This "digital push" creates a goldmine for:
-Advertising Giants: More eyes on screens mean more data to track and sell.
-Gaming & Ed-Tech: A government-subsidized pipeline of new users delivered right from the classroom.
-The Ecosystem Loop: One hand of the state expresses "concern" about addiction, while the other builds the infrastructure that makes addiction profitable.
This isn't just about "digital empowerment." It looks increasingly like ecosystem profit maximization disguised as education. While we debate "policy," corporations are calculating "Average Revenue Per User" (ARPU).
Beyond the balance sheets of Reliance or Google lies a deeper danger. When education is designed to feed a data-hungry ecosystem, we aren't just selling our children’s time—we are selling their moral compass. Is it a coincidence that policy so perfectly aligns with corporate revenue? Or is this a "planned synergy" where the youth are the product, not the priority?
My point is straightforward: Empowering youth with high-level skills—video production, scripting, and editing—is a hollow victory if we neglect the foundation of Digital Ethics and Legal Awareness. Without a mandatory curriculum covering the IT Act, POCSO, and Obscenity Laws,we aren't just creating employees; we are potentially equipping the next generation of digital exploiters.
The Risk is Real: Youth are hardwired to seek the path of least resistance. If we normalize technical mastery without moral boundaries, those skills will inevitably be weaponized for "quick-money" schemes: hyper-sexualized content, objectification, and ethical exploitation.
The Bottom Line: Job creation cannot come at the cost of societal decay. We must teach responsibility alongside craft, ensuring that the creators of tomorrow use their power to build culture, not degrade it.
What a Real Digital Future Should Look Like:
- Using AI to make farming more productive
- Making online education safe and truly effective
- Teaching coding, data science, research
- Digitizing governance, healthcare, laws
- Not teaching dopamine farming, showing anything for views, doing anything for reels — right from school
The bigger question is generational: are we raising creators or consumers, thinkers or entertainers? Policy doesn’t just create jobs—it shapes the values of an entire generation.
The Mandatory Guardrails: No Lab Without a Compass
If AVGC labs are to become a reality in 15,000 schools, they cannot exist in a moral vacuum. To prevent these centers from becoming "dopamine factories" or hubs for exploitative content, the following National Guardrails must be non-negotiable:
-The "License to Create" Curriculum: Before a student touches a high-end editing suite, they must pass a compulsory module on Digital Ethics and the Law. This includes a deep dive into the IT Act, POCSO, and Obscenity Laws to understand that a "viral video" can have life-altering legal consequences.
-The Ethics Audit: Schools must implement a Zero-Tolerance Policy for explicit, adult-oriented, or hyper-sexualized projects. Every "lab project" should be subject to a content audit, ensuring students use their skills for storytelling, education, and social good.
-Mental Health & Gender Sensitivity: Content creation is inherently psychological. Training must include modules on how to handle online validation (likes/comments), body image issues, and the ethical portrayal of all genders.
-The "Red Line" Policy: A clear, national directive that no adult or substandard content creation is permitted under the guise of "vocational training" or "portfolio building."
-Fundamentals First: We must not trade "Reels for Reason." Coding, mathematics, and critical thinking must remain the backbone of the curriculum. A student should know how an algorithm works (science) before they learn how to manipulate one for views.
One Final Question for All of Us
Are we preparing responsible digital citizens — or just profitable digital consumers? And most importantly:
Whose bill will rise more from all this — our children’s future, or some corporation’s data revenue?
If India truly wants a digital future, it must first decide whether that future belongs to responsible citizens or profitable consumers — and legislate accordingly.
0 Comments