As the Center formed a committee and high-level ministerial body to shape India’s artificial intelligence (AI) policy, a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) official said the government has not ruled out the possibility of a separate legal framework for the technology in the future.
For now, the government is of the view that the dedicated legislation is unnecessary given that AI is in an early, innovation-driven stage in the country, but it has kept the door open for future legislation, the official said, requesting anonymity.
MeitY recently announced the creation of two committees to advise the government on AI governance policy development and coordination. A permanent expert advisory body—Technology and Policy Expert Committee (TPEC) was announced on April 18 to provide guidance on policy, regulation and engagement at international forums to a high-level inter-ministerial body—AI Governance and Economic Group (AIEG). The ministry announced the formation of AIGEG on 16 April. “Their role is only to advise the government. They do not have independent statutory authority. They are not regulatory bodies,” said the official quoted above. He said that his recommendations would not be legally binding.
Of course, unlike some jurisdictions like the EU AI Act, India does not yet have a dedicated AI law. For now, some aspects of AI, especially AI-generated content, have been addressed in a limited manner under existing IT rules.
The formation of the two committees gives formal effect to India’s AI governance guidelines released last November and the recommendations made in the Economic Survey in January this year.
