Centre may ban gaming apps involved in betting: IT minister
What's the story
The central government will likely ban gaming apps in India that are involved in alleged betting and other activities harmful to people, said the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar. According to ANI, the government is mulling the harsh step in light of several incidents of online gaming addiction, as well as a recent incident of religious conversion via games.
Context
Why does this story matter?
The development comes nearly two months after the Centre issued rules for online gaming apps in order to regulate them. Last year, the Ministry of Home Affairs recommended a ban on 54 Chinese apps, out of which as many as 10 are gaming apps. The government said that these top 10 gaming apps banned in India pose a threat to national security.
Statement
These 3 categories of games will be banned in India
Speaking to ANI, Chandrasekhar said the government had already prepared a blueprint of the new rules for online gaming, and a decision on the ban would be taken soon. The games that will be banned are those that involve betting, are harmful to users, and have an addiction factor. However, he did not mention the parameters that will be used to classify these games.
Twitter Post
Prepared framework regarding online gaming for 1st time: Chandrasekhar
“For the first time we have prepared a framework regarding online gaming…”: Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on the issue of religious conversion through online gaming.#RajeevChandrasekhar #onlinegaming #online #gaming #games #tech #thestatesmannews #TheStatesman pic.twitter.com/bGlrmoBdk4
— The Statesman (@TheStatesmanLtd) June 12, 2023
History
Action on Chinese apps following LAC clashes
The Centre has previously banned over 300 Chinese applications and initiated a banning process for another 230 apps. According to reports, tensions in Indo-China relations heightened after the conflict in Galwan Valley in 2020. Since then, the two nations have undertaken many inter-military discussions to ease tensions. However, triggering events continue to occur along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).