India’s data protection law will set global benchmark: Prasad

Law and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said the government will come up with a robust data protection law which will set a global benchmark.

“We will come up with data protection law that will set a global benchmark like the way we have done for Aadhaar,” Prasad said at a session organised by Biju Janata Dal MP Baijayant Panda on privacy and data protection.

The minister said the government has formed a committee to give a structured report on data utility, data privacy and data availability.

“That committee is to give a report in coming three months. I want to assure you that we respect data sovereignty of Indians but we also appeal to Indians that your data must be made available also for legitimate concerns, legitimate interest and for development of India,” Prasad said.

He said data of people should be available for innovation and research. The minister said India’s digital economy is going to be $1 trillion and stakeholders of the economy have said it will become $2 trillion in the next five-seven years.

“The projection is five-six million jobs will be created only in digital economy in coming five-seven years apart from giving taxes,” Prasad said.

The minister said digital transactions increased from 3,700 per day in November 2016 to 5.4 million per day at present. Enumerating achievements of the government in the last three years, he said 93 mobile manufacturing companies have come in India and there is scope for medical, defence, automobile electronics in the country.

“The reason why I very briefly gave the(information on) whole digital ecosystem is how should we go forward? Should we go forward in the name of privacy to kill it? Should we stop it or should we not stop it? That is indeed a challenge,” Prasad said.

He said the information technology revolution is also to be respected, accelerated and in this larger framework issue of privacy has to be considered.

“In a strict sense, in a conservative sense, since I am also law minister and the matter is pending (before court), I will be guarded in my comment but in strict sense what you do in your house is your privacy,” Prasad said.