#FactCheck - False Claim of Italian PM Congratulating on Ram Temple, Reveals Birthday Thanks

Introduction

In recent years, India has witnessed a significant rise in the popularity and recognition of esports, which refers to online gaming. Esports has emerged as a mainstream phenomenon, influencing players and youngsters worldwide. In India, with the penetration of the internet at 52%, the youth has got its attracted to Esports. In this blog post, we will look at how the government is booting the players, establishing professional leagues, and supporting gaming companies and sponsors in the best possible manner. As the ecosystem continues to rise in prominence and establish itself as a mainstream sporting phenomenon in India.

Factors Shaping Esports in India: A few factors are shaping and growing the love for esports in India here. Let’s have a look.

Technological Advances: The availability and affordability of high-speed internet connections and smart gaming equipment have played an important part in making esports more accessible to a broader audience in India. With the development of smartphones and low-cost gaming PCs, many people may now easily participate in and watch esports tournaments.

Youth Demographic: India has a large population of young people who are enthusiastic gamers and tech-savvy. The youth demographic’s enthusiasm for gaming has spurred the expansion of esports in the country, as they actively participate in competitive gaming and watch major esports competitions.

Increase in the Gaming community: Gaming has been deeply established in Indian society, with many people using it for enjoyment and social contact. As the competitive component of gaming, esports has naturally gained popularity among gamers looking for a more competitive and immersive experience.

Esports Infrastructure and Events: The creation of specialised esports infrastructure, such as esports arenas, gaming cafés, and tournament venues, has considerably aided esports growth in India. Major national and international esports competitions and leagues have also been staged in India, offering exposure and possibilities for prospective esports players. Also supports various platforms such as YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook gaming, which has played a vital role in showcasing and popularising Esports in India.

Government support: Corporate and government sectors in India have recognised the potential of esports and are actively supporting its growth. Major corporate investments, sponsorships, and collaborations with esports organisations have supplied the financial backing and resources required for the country’s esports development. Government attempts to promote esports have also been initiated, such as forming esports governing organisations and including esports in official sporting events.

Growing Popularity and Recognition: Esports in India has witnessed a significant surge in viewership and fanbase, all thanks to online streaming platforms such as Twitch, YouTube which have provided a convenient way for fans to watch live esports events at home and at high-definition quality social media platforms let the fans to interact with their favourite players and stay updated on the latest esports news and events.

Esports Leagues in India

The organisation of esports tournaments and leagues in India has increased, with the IGL being one of the largest and most popular. The ESL India Premiership is a major esports event the Electronic Sports League organised in collaboration with NODWIN Gaming. Viacom18, a well-known Indian media business, established UCypher, an esports league. It focuses on a range of gaming games such as CS: GO, Dota 2, and Tekken in order to promote esports as a professional sport in India. All of these platforms provide professional players with a venue to compete and establish their profile in the esports industry.

India’s Performance in Esports to Date

Indian esports players have achieved remarkable global success, including outstanding results in prominent events and leagues. Individual Indian esports players’ success stories illustrate their talent, determination, and India’s ability to flourish in the esports sphere. These accomplishments contribute to the worldwide esports landscape’s awareness and growth of Indian esports. To add the name of the players and their success stories that have bought pride to India, they are Tirth Metha, Known as “Ritr”, a CS:GO player, Abhijeet “Ghatak”, Ankit “V3nom”, Saloni “Meow16K”.Apart from this Indian women’s team has also done exceptionally well in CS:GO and has made it to the finale.

Government and Corporate Sectors support: The Indian esports business has received backing from the government and corporate sectors, contributing to its growth and acceptance as a genuine sport.

Government Initiatives: The Indian government has expressed increased support for esports through different initiatives. This involves recognising esports as an official sport, establishing esports regulating organisations, and incorporating esports into national sports federations. The government has also announced steps to give financial assistance, subsidies, and infrastructure development for esports, therefore providing a favourable environment for the industry’s growth. Recently, Kalyan Chaubey, joint secretary and acting CEO of the IOA, personally gave the athletes cutting-edge training gear during this occasion, providing kits to the players. The kit includes the following:

Advanced gaming mouse.

Keyboard built for quick responses.

A smooth mousepad

A headphone for crystal-clear communication

An eSports bag to carry the equipment.

Corporate Sponsorship and Partnerships

Indian corporations have recognised esports’ promise and actively sponsored and collaborated with esports organisations, tournaments, and individual players. Companies from various industries, including technology, telecommunications, and entertainment, have invested in esports to capitalise on its success and connect with the esports community. These sponsorships and collaborations give financial support, resources, and visibility to esports in India. The leagues and championships provide opportunities for young players to showcase their talent.

Challenges and future

While esports provides great job opportunities, several obstacles must be overcome in order for the industry to expand and gain recognition:

Infrastructure & Training Facilities: Ensuring the availability of high-quality training facilities and infrastructure is critical for developing talent and allowing players to realise their maximum potential. Continued investment in esports venues, training facilities, and academies is critical for the industry’s long-term success.

Fostering a culture of skill development and giving outlets for formal education in esports would improve the professionalism and competitiveness of Indian esports players. Collaborations between educational institutions and esports organisations can result in the development of specialised programs in areas such as game analysis, team management, and sports psychology.

Establishing a thorough legal framework and governance structure for esports will help it gain legitimacy as a professional sport. Clear standards on player contracts, player rights, anti-doping procedures, and fair competition policies are all part of this.

Conclusion

Esports in India provide massive professional opportunities and growth possibilities for aspiring esports athletes. The sector’s prospects are based on overcoming infrastructure, perception, talent development, and regulatory barriers. Esports may establish itself as a viable and acceptable career alternative in India with continued support, investment, and stakeholder collaboration

Introduction

The United Nations (UN) has unveiled a set of principles, known as the 'Global Principles for Information Integrity', to combat the spread of online misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech. These guidelines aim to address the widespread harm caused by false information on digital platforms. The UN's Global Principles are based on five core principles: social trust and resilience, independent, free, and pluralistic media, healthy incentives, transparency and research, and public empowerment. The UN chief emphasized that the threats to information integrity are not new but are now spreading at unprecedented speeds due to digital platforms and artificial intelligence technologies.

These principles aim to enhance global cooperation in order to create a safer online environment. It was further highlighted that the spread of misinformation, disinformation, hate speech, and other risks in the information environment poses threats to democracy, human rights, climate action, and public health. This impact is intensified by the emergence of rapidly advancing Artificial Intelligence Technology (AI tech) that poses a growing threat to vulnerable groups in information environments.

The Highlights of Key Principles

1. Societal Trust and Resilience: Trust in information sources and the ability and resilience to handle disruptions are critical for maintaining information integrity. Both are at risk from state and non-state actors exploiting the information ecosystem.
2. Healthy Incentives: Current business models reliant on targeted advertising threaten information integrity. The complex, opaque nature of digital advertising benefits large tech companies and it requires reforms to ensure transparency and accountability.
3. Public Empowerment: People require the capability to manage their online interactions, the availability of varied and trustworthy information, and the capacity to make informed decisions. Media and digital literacy are crucial, particularly for marginalized populations.
4. Independent, Free, and Pluralistic Media: A free press supports democracy by fostering informed discourse, holding power accountable, and safeguarding human rights. Journalists must operate safely and freely, with access to diverse news sources.
5. Transparency and research: Technology companies must be transparent about how information is propagated and how personal data is used. Research and privacy-preserving data access should be encouraged to address information integrity gaps while protecting those investigating and reporting on these issues.

Stakeholders Called for Action

Stakeholders, including technology companies, AI actors, advertisers, media, researchers, civil society organizations, state and political actors, and the UN, have been called to take action under the UN Global Principles for Information Integrity. These principles should be used to build and participate in broad cross-sector coalitions that bring together diverse expertise from civil society, academia, media, government, and the international private sector, focussing on capacity-building and meaningful youth engagement through dedicated advisory groups. Additionally, collaboration is required to develop multi-stakeholder action plans at regional, national, and local levels, engaging communities in grassroots initiatives and ensuring that youth are fully and meaningfully involved in the process.

Implementation and Monitoring

To effectively implement the UN Global Principles at large requires developing a multi-stakeholder action plan at various levels such as at the regional, national, and local levels. These plans should be informed and created by advice and counsel from an extensive range of communities including any of the grassroots initiatives having a deep understanding of regional challenges and their specific needs. Monitoring and evaluation are also regarded as essential components of the implementation process. Regular assessments of the progress, combined with the flexibility to adapt strategies as needed, will help ensure that the principles are effectively translated into practice.

Challenges and Considerations

Implementing these Global Principles of the UN will have certain challenges. The complexities that the digital landscape faces with the rapid pace of technological revamp, and alterations in the diversity of cultural and political contexts all present significant hurdles. Furthermore, the efforts to combat misinformation must be balanced with protecting fundamental rights, including the right to freedom of expression and privacy. Addressing these challenges to counter informational integrity will require continuous and ongoing collaboration with constant dialogue among stakeholders towards a commitment to innovation and continuous learning. It is also important to recognise and address the power imbalance within the information ecosystem, ensuring that all voices are heard and that any person, specifically, the marginalised communities is not cast aside.

Conclusion

The UN Global Principles for Online Misinformation and Information Integrity provide a comprehensive framework for addressing the critical challenges that are present while facing information integrity today. Advocating and promoting societal trust, healthy incentives, public empowerment, independent media, and transparency, these principles offer a passage towards a more resilient and trustworthy digital environment. The future success of these principles depends upon the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders, working together to safeguard the integrity of information for everyone.

References

• https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/un-unveils-global-principles-to-combat-online-misinformation-hate-speech-124062500317_1.html
• https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2024/06/global-principles-information-integrity-launch/ 
• https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/un-global-principles-for-information-integrity-en.pdf
• https://www.un.org/en/content/common-agenda-report/assets/pdf/Common_Agenda_Report_English.pdf 

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Introduction

Assisted Reproductive Technology (“ART”) refers to a diverse set of medical procedures designed to aid individuals or couples in achieving pregnancy when conventional methods are unsuccessful. This umbrella term encompasses various fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), and gamete and embryo manipulation. ART procedures involve the manipulation of both male and female reproductive components to facilitate conception.

The dynamic landscape of data flows within the healthcare sector, notably in the realm of ART, demands a nuanced understanding of the complex interplay between privacy regulations and medical practices. In this context, the Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices And Procedures And Sensitive Personal Data Or Information) Rules, 2011, play a pivotal role, designating health information as "sensitive personal data or information" and underscoring the importance of safeguarding individuals' privacy. This sensitivity is particularly pronounced in the ART sector, where an array of personal data, ranging from medical records to genetic information, is collected and processed. The recent Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021, in conjunction with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, establishes a framework for the regulation of ART clinics and banks, presenting a layered approach to data protection.

A note on data generated by ART

Data flows in any sector are scarcely uniform and often not easily classified under straight-jacket categories. Consequently, mapping and identifying data and its types become pivotal. It is believed that most data flows in the healthcare sector are highly sensitive and personal in nature, which may severely compromise the privacy and safety of an individual if breached. The Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices And Procedures And Sensitive Personal Data Or Information) Rules, 2011 (“SPDI Rules”) categorizes any information pertaining to physical, physiological, mental conditions or medical records and history as “sensitive personal data or information”; this definition is broad enough to encompass any data collected by any ART facility or equipment. These include any information collected during the screening of patients, pertaining to ovulation and menstrual cycles, follicle and sperm count, ultrasound results, blood work etc. It also includes pre-implantation genetic testing on embryos to detect any genetic abnormality. 

But data flows extend beyond mere medical procedures and technology. Health data also involves any medical procedures undertaken, the amount of medicine and drugs administered during any procedure, its resultant side effects, recovery etc. Any processing of the above-mentioned information, in turn, may generate more personal data points relating to an individual’s political affiliations, race, ethnicity, genetic data such as biometrics and DNA etc.; It is seen that different ethnicities and races react differently to the same/similar medication and have different propensities to genetic diseases. Further, it is to be noted that data is not only collected by professionals but also by intelligent equipment like AI which may be employed by any facility to render their service. Additionally, dissemination of information under exceptional circumstances (e.g. medical emergency) also affects how data may be classified. Considerations are further nuanced when the fundamental right to identity of a child conceived and born via ART may be in conflict with the fundamental right to privacy of a donor to remain anonymous. 

Intersection of Privacy laws and ART laws: 

In India, ART technology is regulated by the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021 (“ART Act”). With this, the Union aims to regulate and supervise assisted reproductive technology clinics and ART banks, prevent misuse and ensure safe and ethical practice of assisted reproductive technology services. When read with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (“DPDP Act”) and other ancillary guidelines, the two legislations provide some framework regulations for the digital privacy of health-based apps.

The ART Act establishes a National Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Registry (“National Registry”) which acts as a central database for all clinics and banks and their nature of services. The Act also establishes a National Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Board (“National Board”)  under the Surrogacy Act to monitor the implementation of the act and advise the central government on policy matters. It also supervises the functioning of the National Registry, liaises with State Boards and curates a code of conduct for professionals working in ART clinics and banks. Under the DPDP Act, these bodies (i.e. National Board, State Board, ART clinics and banks) are most likely classified as data fiduciaries (primarily clinics and banks), data processors (these may include National Board and State boards) or an amalgamation of both (these include any appropriate authority established under the ART Act for investigation of complaints, suspend or cancellation of registration of clinics etc.) depending on the nature of work undertaken by them. If so classified, then the duties and liabilities of data fiduciaries and processors would necessarily apply to these bodies. As a result, all bodies would necessarily have to adopt Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) and other organizational measures to ensure compliance with privacy laws in place. This may be considered one of the most critical considerations of any ART facility since any data collected by them would be sensitive personal data pertaining to health, regulated by the Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices And Procedures And Sensitive Personal Data Or Information) Rules, 2011 (“SPDI Rules 2011”). These rules provide for how sensitive personal data or information are to be collected, handled and processed by anyone.

The ART Act independently also provides for the duties of ART clinics and banks in the country. ART clinics and banks are required to inform the commissioning couple/woman of all procedures undertaken and all costs, risks, advantages, and side effects of their selected procedure. It mandatorily ensures that all information collected by such clinics and banks to not informed to anyone except the database established by the National Registry or in cases of medical emergency or on order of court. Data collected by clinics and banks (these include details on donor oocytes, sperm or embryos used or unused) are required to be detailed and must be submitted to the National Registry online. ART banks are also required to collect personal information of donors including name, Aadhar number, address and any other details. By mandating online submission, the ART Act is harmonized with the DPDP Act, which regulates all digital personal data and emphasises free, informed consent.

Conclusion

With the increase in active opt-ins for ART, data privacy becomes a vital consideration for all healthcare facilities and professionals. Safeguard measures are not only required on a corporate level but also on a governmental level. It is to be noted that in the 262 Session of the Rajya Sabha, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology reported 165 data breach incidents involving citizen data from January 2018 to October 2023 from the Central Identities Data Repository despite publicly denying. This discovery puts into question the safety and integrity of data that may be submitted to the National Registry database, especially given the type of data (both personal and sensitive information) it aims to collate. At present the ART Act is well supported by the DPDP Act. However, further judicial and legislative deliberations are required to effectively regulate and balance the interests of all stakeholders.

References

• The Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices And Procedures And Sensitive Personal Data Or Information) Rules, 2011
• Caring for Intimate Data in Fertility Technologies https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/3411764.3445132 
• Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
• https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/expert-insights/pharmacogenomics-and-race-can-heritage-affect-drug-disposition