The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has finalised the much-anticipated Personal Data Protection Bill, Union IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Friday. The next required step is a Cabinet approval before the Bill goes to the Parliament.

"We have finalised the data protection law. I will take it to the Cabinet. We have had 3-4 rounds of consultation," Prasad said while addressing the CII's National Council meeting.

Emphasising on data security and the country's hold over its data, the Minister said: "India will uphold its data sovereignty. It will not be negotiable. India is a huge country producing a lot of data." 

Prasad acknowledged that "some degree of data movement was important in the digital world", but noted that it would be based upon reciprocity and understanding.

The draft Personal Data Protection Bill, submitted to the government by the Justice B. N. Krishna Committee in July last year, sets out how the personal data of individuals should be processed by the government and private entities incorporated in India and abroad.

Prasad said that along with data security, the focus should also be on data availability, utility, innovation and localisation.

He also emphasised on the need for data anonimity. Giving an analogy, Prasad, who also holds the telecom and law portfolios, said: "To have due research in a particular financial area, we must have objective data, but the occupent and owners of that data must be kept out of public gaze."IANS