Centre to write to states for views on data protection law

The Centre will soon write to states seeking their views on the proposed data protection law, Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said today.

The Justice Srikrishna panel on data protection had submitted its report to Prasad last week, proposing a draft law on the issue.

"The Secretary will write to the Chief Secretary of all states for consultation of the data protection law. I would like to have an elaborate debate here before framing the law," he said during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha.

He said data was a necessity now and there is a need for a balanced approach on it.

"We have to work in balance. There has to be a balance between data availability, interpretation, utility and privacy so that India becomes a global centre," Prasad said.

In its report, the panel has called for a new legislation to protect an individual's right over his data. It said that neither the right to privacy, nor the right to information is absolute and the two will have to be balanced against each other in certain circumstances.