Examine the adequacy of India's legal framework under the POCSO Act and the IT Rules, 2021 in tackling online child sexual abuse material. What reforms are needed?

Online child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is growing fast. NHRC-cited reports showed a 250–300% rise on Indian social media [4]. In November 2026 the NHRC also flagged reports of paid CSAM on Meta-owned platforms [5]. India's framework is strong against offenders but weak against platforms.

Strengths of the framework

• POCSO Sec 2(da) includes computer-generated images that cannot be told apart from a real child, which helps against AI-made content. Sec 15 punishes storage, with penalties graded by purpose [1].
• The courts have made the law stricter. In Just Rights for Children Alliance v. S. Harish (2024) the Supreme Court held that viewing or storing such material is an offence. It also asked courts to use the term CSEAM (child sexual exploitative and abuse material) instead of "child pornography" [2].
• The IT Rules, 2021 set due-diligence duties for intermediaries (platforms that carry users' content) against content harmful to children [1]. A platform that fails them can lose safe harbour under Sec 79 of the IT Act.

Gaps

• Weak duty for platforms: "reasonable efforts" is a duty to try, not to achieve a result, so a breach is hard to prove [1].
• Coverage gaps: animated and gaming CSAM fall outside both POCSO and the IT Act. Compulsory reporting by intermediaries is still only a recommendation [3].
• Monetisation: when abuse is paid for through a platform's own features, the platform is not a passive carrier, and safe harbour was not built for that case [5].
• Old wording: the statute still says "child pornography" despite the Supreme Court's direction [1][2].
• Weak enforcement: states lack trained cyber investigators and forensic analysts [7].

Reforms needed

• Use the proposed Digital India Act [8] to replace "reasonable efforts" with clear duties that can be audited, and make reporting by intermediaries compulsory [3].
• Add the IT Act penalties and platform duties recommended by the Rajya Sabha Ad Hoc Committee [6].
• Amend Sec 2(da) to use CSEAM and to cover animated and gaming material [2][3].
• Scale up AI tools such as the Proactive Monitoring Tool to find abuse material before users report it, and link cyber training to promotion [7].

In short, the law now reaches viewers but not yet the platforms that carry the material. Clear platform duties, fuller definitions and better enforcement would close the gap. That would meet the Article 21 promise of dignity and India's UNCRC obligations, so that the internet stays open to children without exposing them to abuse.