Lok Sabha Question No. 1480 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-26
Subject: Committees on Social Media
Ministry: INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
Asked by: Poonam (Mahajan) Vajendla Rao

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1480

TO BE ANSWERED ON 26.07.2022

COMMITTEES ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

1480. SHRIMATI POONAM MAHAJAN:

Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state;

- (a) whether the Government has constituted several committees in the past to suggest a framework to keep a watch on social media;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the details of recommendations of the committees;
- (c)  the  details  of  action  taken  for  minimising  the  cases  of  obscene postings and outraging the modesty of women; and
- (d)  the  details  and  the  number  of  social  media  groups  that  have complied  with  the  rules  and  appointed  nodal  officers  for  addressing the complaints?

## ANSWER

- THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING; AND MINISTER OF YOUTH AFFAIRS AND SPORTS (SHRI ANURAG SINGH THAKUR): (a)  &  (b):    Ministry  of  Electronics  and  Information  Technology  (MeitY)  has informed  that  it  regularly  interacts  with  concerned  stakeholders,  and  has also held several public consultations   to make social media platforms safer and more accountable to the citizens and also ensure transparency in their services to the users. (c) :The Government has in place institutional mechanisms to deal with cyber crimes against women which inter-alia, include the following :(i) Sections 66E, 67, and 67A of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 provide  for  the  punishment  and  fine  for  violation  of  bodily  privacy  and publishing or transmitting of obscene/sexually-explicit material in electronic form. (ii) Part-II  of  the  Information  Technology  (Intermediary  Guidelines  and Digital Media Ethics Code ) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules 2021)  inter-alia provides for users'  safety,  removal  of  obscene,  pornographic  content,  deployment  of technological  measures  by  certain  intermediaries  to  proactively  identify content on child abuse, a robust grievance redressal mechanism etc. (iii)        Part  III  of  IT  Rules  2021  inter  alia  requires  the  publishers  of  online curated content (OTT Platforms) to adhere to a code of ethics which provides for self-classification of content into age based categories as per guidelines provided  in  the  Schedule  to  the  Rules,  which  takes  into  account  concerns
- like language, nudity, sex, violence etc.

(iv)    MeitY  through  a  program,  namely,  Information  Security  Education  & Awareness  (ISEA),  has  been  creating  awareness  among  users  including women and children highlighting the importance of digital safety while using Internet. A dedicated website for information security awareness (https://www.infosecawareness.in) provides relevant awareness material. (d):  All online intermediaries rendering services in India, publishers of news and current affairs and publishers of online curated content on digital media come  under  the  purview  of  Information  Technology  (IT)  Act,  2000  and  the Rules made thereunder.

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