Context: Present data-based technological development and Personal Data Protection Bill 2019 presents a unique challenge to the privacy of individuals.  

• Privacy protects heterogeneity and pluralism, and the diversity of our cultures. It is the necessary condition precedent for the enjoyment of freedom under Part III of the Constitution. The right to privacy was very much part of the original intent of the framers of the Constitution, and privacy is key to freedom of thought and the right to think.
• The right of privacy is well established in international law. The core privacy principle in modern law may be found in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Besides this, philosophers and ethicists have described privacy as an indispensable characteristic of personal freedom.
• But a Supreme Court ruling is certainly not enough. The relentless march of global technology and the implementation of the Aadhaar biometric programme, in particular, have created the need to take a new look at the legal position of privacy in India.

ABOUT

• In August 2017, a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court in Justice K. S. Puttaswamy (Retd) Vs Union of India unanimously held that Indians have a constitutionally protected fundamental right to privacy that is an intrinsic part of life and liberty under Article 21.
• The judges had declared that while in certain circumstances the privacy of individuals was to be protected, there was no constitutional right to privacy in and of itself.

ISSUES
Commercial and Political consequences of the Data Protection Bill (DPB)
Data Collection related issues  

• First- Bill will negatively impact the emerging technologies market of India dealing in the creation, use, and sale of data that is valued at $1 trillion by 2025.  
• Second- The bill requires digital firms who want to operate in India to obtain permission from users before collecting their data.  
• Third– Bill also declares that users who provide data are, in effect, the owners of their own data and may control its usage or request firms to delete it.  
• European internet-users are able to exercise a “right to be forgotten” and have evidence of their online presence removed. 
• Fourth– The bill allows the government to use “critical” or “sensitive” personal data, related to information such as religion, to protect national interest. 
• Fifth– Open-ended access to government could lead to misuse of data. Mr. B N Srikrishna, the chairmen of the drafting committee of the original bill, warned that government-access exemptions risk creating an “Orwellian state”.

2. Issues related to Establishment of Data Protection Authority (DPA)  

• Bill aims to establish a Data Protection Authority (DPA), which will be charged with managing data collected by the Aadhaar programme. 
• Authority will consist of a chairperson and six committee members,  
• Members will be appointed by the central government on the recommendation of a selection committee.
• Members will be selected from senior civil servants, including the Cabinet Secretary. 
• The government’s power to appoint and remove members at its discretion provides it an ability to influence the independence of agency.
• Unlike similar institutions, such as the Reserve Bank of India or the Securities and Exchange Board, the DPA will not have an independent expert or member of the judiciary on its governing committee.
• The UIDAI, for its part, has a chairperson appointed by the central government and reporting directly to the Centre.

3. Issues related to government use of data for surveillance

• There are instances that suggest, India is acquiring some features of a surveillance state. 
• As stated by the Union Home minister recently, police used facial recognition technology to identify people after the anti-CAA protests and the Delhi riots. 
• There is a high possibility that police was matching the video offstage with the database of Election Commission and e-Vahan, a pan-India database of vehicle registration.

4. Issue related to the safety of data 

• There are instances of controversy where the government has shown a casual approach towards data safety and privacy of its citizens:  
• First, Safety concerns were raised during aadhaar data collection, which stores biometric data in the form of iris and fingerprints which is a violation of the right to privacy.  
• Second instance was of Aarogya Setu contact-tracing app which was allegedly not able to protect the data provided by citizens.  

Road Ahead

• The DPB is a unique opportunity for India, a country with some 740 million internet users, to forge a pathbreaking agenda that will act as a standard-setter in the still-developing field of national data protection legislation.