A panel headed by Justice BN Srikrishna submitted its report to the government on suggestions for a data protection law that will cover everything from Aadhaar biometric database and consent.
The retired Supreme Court judge explained that the draft bill was prepared through an open process where they consulted stakeholders in the major information technology hubs in India, as they'd be the most affected by it. These included Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
“As things progress and technology progresses, we will need to fine tune the law,” he said in the media conference along with Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. “The minister has promised me that he will put it in the public domain as soon as possible, may by this evening or tomorrow morning. I don't think it is necessary to say anything more than that.”
Although even the ordinary citizen will be affected, the major IT centres are the ones who need to come under data control or the data protection law.Justice BN Srikrishna
The committee, which was formed in July 2017, had met for the final time yesterday to discuss various aspects, including contentious issues like data-localisation, classification of sensitive personal data and the telecom regulator TRAI's recent recommendations on data privacy and ownership. The recommendations are expected to prompt amendments to nearly 70 legislation, one of the members in the meeting had told the newswire PTI.
A white paper that was released in November last year had suggested the need for a framework to help protect Indian citizens' data based on seven principles ranging from flexibility to take into account changing technologies to the penalties for wrongful acts. The panel also said it's critical to decide on the definition of personal data, for which it had invited comments.
Watch the press conference here:
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
