Rollout of Data Rules set for mid-2025: IT Minister Premium

Government to implement Digital Personal Data Protection Rules by mid-2025, allowing two-year transition period for compliance.

The government is aiming to notify and begin implementing the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 — currently in a draft state — by the middle of this year, Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

“The consultations so far have been extensive, and people are by and large okay with the provisions,” Mr. Vaishnaw said in an exclusive interview with The Hindu on Wednesday. “I don’t see too many amendments coming in the final notification beyond some tweaks.”

While large firms are prepared to comply quickly with most of the Rules, Mr. Vaishnaw said that a maximum of two years is being allowed as a transition period to the new regime. This will allow certain categories of data fiduciaries some more time to prepare for the full implementation of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, which the Rules seek to operationalise. The government is currently accepting stakeholder comments on the draft until February 18.

“The law has been drafted in a way to ensure the functioning and autonomy of the Personal Data Protection Board of India,” Mr. Vaishnaw said, adding that the implementation of the DPDP Act would be digital in nature. The same approach has been followed in at least one other institution: the Grievance Appellate Committee, which deals with social media complaints under the IT Rules, 2021.

On electronics manufacturing, Mr. Vaishnaw said, “We are working on a programme for promoting and incentivising component manufacturing in our country”, adding to existing schemes for IT hardware and semiconductors. Indigenous components are key to reducing import dependence in India’s growing electronics manufacturing sector.

“The product validation centre of Applied Materials is now functional in Bengaluru; there is one more centre which is likely to open up very soon in Karnataka, which will be much more expanded, which is focusing on designing equipment in India,” Mr. Vaishnaw said. “There has also been progress in the manufacturing of servers and laptops; we are soon opening a laptop production facility in Chennai.”

While global IT firms saw India as a way to save costs in the past, they are now seeing the country as a leading source of talent and demand, Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said in an exclusive interview with The Hindu.