India to Enact Data Privacy Law, Encourages Data Flow

New Delhi, Nov 21 (PTI) India will come out with a legal framework to ensure data privacy that will encourage free data flow among trusted partners, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said, as he sought investment in technology and innovation.

Speaking at the UK India Business Council's 'UK-India Technology Futures Conference', the minister said India and the UK can collaborate on technology in the fields of AI education, telemedicine, climate modelling, precision agriculture and organic chemical, electronic and food industries.

Goyal pointed out that it will be important to understand how in the future the digital world and sustainability issues will intersect.

A major portion of energy will be consumed by systems that will churn out data and that will have an impact on sustainability issues, he said, adding that there are very few places in the world where there is an interconnected grid in the way that India has.

The minister said that by 2030, India would have a thousand-gigawatt grid connected through the length and breadth of the country with a healthy mix of traditional and renewable energy.

For data centres, this huge amount of clean energy provides unheard-of reliability and sustainability, Goyal said, pointing out that India provides an unmatched opportunity for investors across the world.

Advocating India as the best place to invest in technology and innovation, Goyal informed that in addition to a robust legal system, India is going to bring out a new legal framework to ensure data privacy that will encourage the free flow of data among trusted partners.

Pitching India as the land of opportunities for businesses, he identified five areas for technology cooperation, including skilling of the workforce, telemedicine, disaster management, and agriculture, among others.

Goyal informed the gathering that India is working on many dimensions of technology, including the space sector and animation, gaming, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality.

He further said India has invested through public funding in the semiconductor industry.