Creative solutions will ensure freedom of expression is not curbed: PM

The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, on Saturday said that freedom of expression is guaranteed under the Constitution, and that there is a need to evolve creative solutions to ensure that this inalienable fundamental right is not curbed.

"We need to find creative solutions which do not curb the freedom of expression and the ease of communication that social media provides," Dr. Singh, while addressing state directors general of police and inspectors general of police at their annual conference at Vigyan Bhawan here.

Dr. Singh's statement is significant in the wake of the issue of cyber security being deliberated upon more than before in recent times.

Social media is intimately linked with freedom of expression and has become a preferred means of communication for millions of people.

The three-day conference of DGPs and IGPs deliberated on ways to ensure that this medium is not put to invidious use and came up with mechanism to counter it.

The conference, which was inaugurated by Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde on Thursday, held detailed discussions on issues of improving generation of intelligence and its quick dissemination through the platform of Multi Agency Centre (MAC) and Subsidiary Multi Agency Centres(SMAC).

The conference deliberated on improving the functioning of state intelligence units and how their inputs can be dovetailed into MAC/SMAC network for better coverage.

Major security concerns were addressed and the need for addressing the same collectively was also emphasized.