India chapter of Internet Governance Forum launched, to host 3-day session

Starting August 2021, multiple Pre-IIGF engagement events will be held at several colleges and universities, as a precursor to the IIGF Inaugural event beginning Oct 20

With the theme "Inclusive Internet for Digital India," the India chapter of the United Nations-based forum Internet Governance Forum will host a three-day session, beginning October 20, to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.

The India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) was launched on Monday as a policy discussion platform to bring representatives together from various groups to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet. This mode of engagement is referred to as the multi-stakeholder model of Internet Governance, which has been the key feature for the Internet’s success.  

The multi-stakeholder concept is well adopted by IGF (Internet Governance Forum) under UN and by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

The coordination committee for IIGF-2021 includes National Internet Exchange of India CEO Anil Kumar Jain as Chairman, Broadband India Forum president T V Ramchandran as Vice Chairman, President, Centre for Digital Economy Policy Research, Jaijeet Bhattacharya as Vice Chairman, former director general of Centre for Development of Advanced Computing Rajat Moona as Vice-Chairman and around 12 members representing government, civil society, industries, trusts, associations and so on.

“India is the second-largest broadband subscription country in the world and also has the highest data consumption per user per month. Therefore, the aspirations of the Indians should be reflected in International policy formation and stakeholder discussion. India Internet Governance Forum is the correct initiative for the country to ensure that the growth of broadband adheres to the lifestyle and requirements of the Indian community. IIGF 2021 is adopting the multi-stakeholder concept in organizing the event as per the true spirit of global IGF. The coordination committee has apt representation from civil society, Government, Industry, Industrial association, trust, and other stakeholders,” said Jain.

Starting August 2021, multiple Pre-IIGF engagement events will be held at several colleges and universities, as a precursor to the IIGF Inaugural event. The idea behind this is to engage the youth and students for their participation in October event and prepare the next generation to be part of policy formation.