Microsoft, Amazon called for 'virtual deposition' | Economic Times

NEW DELHI: A joint parliamentary committee (JPC) studying the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 has reached out to companies such as Amazon and Microsoft, industry lobby group Nasscom and some academic institutions, ahead of planned virtual depositions on the landmark Bill.The committee last sought stakeholder feedback in February and is supposed to submit its report to Parliament in the upcoming Monsoon session. According to an industry official, the committee has reached out technology leader Microsoft and e-commerce company Amazon for a virtual deposition. Nasscom is also likely to be called. Since its formation in January, the committee headed by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi has held only internal meetings, where officials from the Ministry of Electronics and IT have briefed it on the provisions of the Bill, which has been in the making for over three years.The industry has highlighted some top issues -- inclusion of non-personal data in the Bill, exemptions that the government has granted for itself, voluntary verification of users by social media companies and weakening of the Data Protection Authority. Companies have also raised the issue of high cost of compliance under the Bill and the risks to start-ups and the software exports industry. ET could not reach Lekhi for comment, and an email remained unanswered. Amazon and Microsoft did not respond to emails seeking comment.“I think the need for a robust data protection regime has always been there and this pandemic has reinforced it since there is a lot more happening through digital and virtual channels,” said Rama Vedashree, CEO of Data Security Council of India, an industry body on data protection. “So, we need a comprehensive data protection law and a regulator to enforce. Businesses also want a predictable policy regime to help in decision making,” she said, adding that the Bill needed to be accelerated now. “I hope the JPC will take the feedback from the industry and move it forward,” she said. Vedashree was a member of the Justice BN Srikrishna committee which first submitted a draft data protection Bill and report in 2018. Nasscom highlighted in a post key points from its February submission which included requests for reconsidering provisions related to the sharing of non-personal data under the PDP Bill which raise intellectual property rights concerns.It said MeitY had already established a committee on non-personal data to consider in detail the framework for sharing of such data and adequate safeguards for sharing.