The government held a stakeholder interaction on the ‘Draft National Data Governance Framework Policy’ at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The National Data Governance Framework Policy aims at standardising government’s data collection and management while catalysing artificial intelligence (AI) and data led research and startup ecosystem.
The event witnessed over 250 participation of stakeholders from industry, start-ups, academia, think tanks, international alliances and government officials from various ministries. Addressing the event, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State, Electronics and Information Technology and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, highlighted the rapid digitalisation of the government and citizens within India, and the subsequent rise in data volumes necessitating a framework for harnessing the potential of this data.
The government asserts that the draft policy and the sound foundation upon which it is built will focus on improving the institutional framework for government data sharing, promoting principles around privacy and security by design, encouraging the use of anonymisation tools and ensuring equitable access to non-personal data for both the public and private sector.
Various suggestions during the interaction included the continuation of the consultative process informing the functioning of the India Data Management Office (IDMO), provisions for harnessing the future potential of integrated datasets and clarifications around the nature of engagement with private players. Furthermore, information and clarity on the operations of the IDMO, access to annotated datasets for AI innovation and active collaboration with private sector and social impact firms to build data capacity was suggested.
