Data barriers against US can affect Indian IT sector, says lobby
DELHI: There are “murmurs” in the US about “reciprocity” if India’s data localization and data privacy policies go in a certain direction, Us-india Business Council (USIBC) president Nisha Biswal has said.
“This is not a policy yet, but it would not be the right outcome for either side,” said the official of USIBC, part of the US Chamber of Commerce.
Washington is known to have expressed concerns about the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’S) circular saying payment data of Indians should be stored only in India as well as parts of a draft Indian data privacy law. Much of India’s IT services industry depends on the North American market.
Biswal said, “What happens if every country does data localization, what happens to IT services sectors that depend on the movement of such data? Many Indian companies depend on processing and aggregating the world’s data. Imagine the disruption all this would have on India’s IT industry.”
She said she understood security and privacy issues that drive India’s data policies, which parallel similar debates across the world. “Even California is considering privacy standards that would differ from the rest of the US. But if nations all develop varying standards, it will affect a global economy that depends on deep collaboration among countries on the use of data.”
Based on past meetings, the RBI remained “committed to the policy that it has put in place”, she said.
Biswal added India and the US needed to “find an equilibrium” that balances privacy and security issues with the needs of a global data economy.
In her meetings with US firms and communities over the past few weeks, she said, it is evident many are thinking of diversifying away from East Asia, “and many are looking closely at India”.
Challenges require greater engagement and investors coming to India need regulatory stability and transparency about policy shifts taking place, she said.
“A lack of a transparent process shakes confidence,” she added, citing recent price controls for medical devices, tariffs on ICT products and data localisation.