India, with over 820 million Internet users, does not have to follow any other country or global practice for its policymaking on the future of the Internet, India’s IT Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Wednesday.
“European General Data Protection Regulation is considered a gold standard for privacy and data protection. But we would like to disagree," Chandrasekhar said at the India Global Forum held in Dubai.
US-based tech giants have been locking horns with New Delhi over an array of issues, expressing concerns about India’s “threatened freedom of expression,” and data localization rules.
India has the largest presence on the global Internet and deserves an opportunity to shape its own destiny, the minister underlined.
“We will chart our own course and build a framework suitable for us,” Chandrasekhar added.
New Delhi is in the process of implementing its data protection regulation as the government last month unveiled the revised digital personal data protection legislation for public consultations.
The Indian minister said that the government would not strongly regulate the Internet, but is “committed to the principles of open, safe and trusted and accountable Internet.”
Under the revised data protection bill, New Delhi plans to impose penalties of around $600 million on firms violating the rules.
At the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Bali last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged that the principle of “data for development” will be integral to India’s G20 presidency.
Western tech giants have confronted New Delhi over several issues, including data localization, which prevents global firms from storing the data of Indian citizens on foreign servers.
However, the revised legislation says that the federal government may notify countries or territories outside India to which a data fiduciary may transfer personal data, per terms and conditions that may be specified later.