Source: Print
The Narendra Modi government wants to reportedly water down the provisions related to data localisation proposed in the draft Personal Data Protection Bill 2018 formulated by the Justice Srikrishna Committee.
The debate on the free-flow and storage of data has assumed significance in the wake of technological developments – such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) – that can harness data to provide better and cheaper services to consumers. The debate on data localisation is now not only a political one, but also a geopolitical one, and a key aspect of trade talks between India and other countries like the US. However, it is important to examine and analyse whether localisation, as defined in the data protection bill, would actually meet its underlying objectives.