The Indian Governance and Policy Project (IGAP) organised a session at the India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) 2025 titled “Child Safety-by-Design for AI-Environments: A Co-Regulatory Roadmap for India.” IGAP deeply appreciates the presence and the insightful contributions of all the panellists; their participation helped shape the day’s discussions.

The session was moderated by Sachin Dhawan (Deputy Director, The Dialogue) and featured the following distinguished panellists:

– Rakesh Maheshwari (ex-Senior Director and GC, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology)

– Kavita Ayyagari (Country Director, Girl Effect India)

– Nishant Singh, PhD (Youth Ki Awaaz)

– Namah Bose (Associate Faculty, Asian School of Cyber Laws)

The attached event report documents the key deliberations from the session and situates them within the broader context of child safety in AI-enabled digital environments in India. It provides a structured synthesis of the principal issues discussed, including emerging risk for children, limitations of existing regulatory approaches, and the growing importance of safety-by-design, digital literacy, and co-regulatory frameworks.

The report also sets out forward-looking recommendations that emerged from the discussion, aimed at strengthening platform accountability, governance mechanisms, and support systems to ensure that child safety is embedded into the design and operation of AI systems as India’s digital ecosystem continues to evolve.

We are pleased to share the report with you as an outcome of our shared efforts.

Download the full report here.