For the young, net tops list of pastimes

For Indians in the age group of 12-18 years, using internet (65 per cent) ranks higher as a pastime than sports (56 per cent), according to a survey. Thirty-four per cent spend almost an hour on the Internet every day.

The Web 2.0 Generation survey, conducted by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), polled over 10,000 school going-children between the age of 12-18 in 11 cities across India.

The survey also highlighted that 85 per cent of them were hooked to one or more social networking sites on the Internet. Orkut scores in terms of usage with 71 per cent, followed by Facebook (65 per cent).

"Nearly half of India's total population is under the age of 20 and classified under the youth category, creating a group of over 459 million - more than the American population. This sizeable generation is already shaping the country and will play an incredibly important role in the direction that the nation takes next," said Ajoy Mukherjee, vice-president, head, global human resources.

According to the survey, India's youths are more likely to have a mobile phone than not, seamlessly move from fixed to mobile Internet, are spending more time online than ever before and have embraced social networks but in a very Indian way.

Internet access at home is significant at 86 per cent in metros and 79 per cent in mini metros. In terms of sourcing information, Indian students are hooked to Google (85 per cent) and Wiki (77 per cent).

The country's largest information technology services company plans to use these findings to understand the next generation better. "It will help us not just to find the best students, but also guide us as to how and what we communicate with them. This is the new, socially connected India that is important for all of us to better understand," said Mukherjee.