Lok Sabha Question No. 3212 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-19
Subject: Authenticity of Digital Content
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Smt. Pratima Mondal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION. NO. 3212

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 19.03.2025

## AUTHENTICITY OF DIGITAL CONTENT

## 3212. SMT. PRATIMA MONDAL:

Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:

(a) the role of the Government in envision for social media platforms in content moderation;

(b) the manner in which the Government ensures that such regulations do not lead to arbitrary takedowns of politically sensitive content;

(c) the initiatives being taken by the Government to equip citizens and media organizations with  tools  to  verify  the  authenticity  of  digital  content  in  view  of  the  rise  of  deep-fake technology and AI-generated misinformation; and

(d) the manner in which the Government is supporting local and community broadcasting to make  sure  media  content  is  available  in  local  languages  and  shows  different  cultural narratives?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA)

(a) to (c):The policies of the Central Government are aimed at ensuring an open, safe, trusted and accountable Internet for its users.To help achieve the said aim, the Central Government, in exercise of its powers under the Information Technology Act, 2000 ('IT Act'), has notified the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 ('IT Rules'). These rules cast specific obligations on intermediaries, including social media intermediaries, to observe due diligence while discharging its duties. In case of failure to  follow  diligence  as  provided  in  the  rules,  an  intermediary  shall  lose  exemption  from liability for any third-party information, data or communication link made available by them and  are  liable  for  the  same  as  per  law.  Such  diligence  includes  the  making  of  reasonable efforts by the intermediary to cause its users not to host, display, upload, publish, transmit or store information which knowingly or intentionally communicates any information which is violative of any law.

The IT Act does not distinguish between any information that is generated using AI tools or any other technology and those which are generated by users themselves.As per the IT Rules intermediaries,  including  social  media  intermediaries,  are  also  expected  to  remove  any information  violative  of  any  law  in  India  as  and  when  brought  to  their  knowledge  either through  a  court  order  or  through  a  notice  by  an  appropriate  government  or  its  authorized agency.The  notices  for  takedown  of  any  such  information  available  on  the  intermediary platform is sent directly to it by the respective appropriate governments or their authorised agencies, where the appropriate government can be both State and Central Government as per the seventh schedule to the Constitution.

This  Ministry  has  also  issued  advisories,  under  the  IT  Rules,  from  time  to  time  to intermediaries/platforms for ensuring compliance on using Artificial Intelligence foundational model(s) /Large Language Model (LLM)/Generative AI (Artificial Intelligence), software(s) or algorithm(s).

(d): The Government of India has taken several initiatives to promote the Community Radio Stations (CRS).The Policy guidelines for setting up of CRS contain provisions relating to the criteria  and  the  process  for  granting  licenses  to  new  CRS  including  eligibility  requirement and regulatory compliance. The said Policy Guidelines, as amended  from time to time,mandates that at least 50% of content shall be generated with the participation of the local community and programmes should preferably be in the local language and dialect(s).

******