This document discusses India's national data sharing and accessibility policy and the data.gov.in portal. It provides a brief history of data.gov.in, describing how it was developed based on U.S. open data platforms and launched in 2012. The functions of data.gov.in are outlined, including providing a catalog of government datasets and allowing users to browse, comment on, and download data. Key government policies related to open data and information in India are also summarized. The document argues that open government data impacts internet governance by changing the skills needed to engage with the state and potentially empowering or seeing issues through a limited lens. It provokes considering opening up internet data to citizens for a more democratic electronic governance.

1. Exploring Internet Governance Implications of an
Expanded Open Data Agenda: Case Study of
Government Data/Information Policies from India
Sumandro Chattapadhyay
HasGeek Media LLP
The Sarai Programme, CSDS
www.ajantriks.net
@ajantriks

2. National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy
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Drafted by Department of Science and Technology
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First draft version made public on May 2011
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Gazette notification on 17th March 2012
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A policy for internal and public sharing of (Central) government
data in both human- and machine-readable forms
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Explicit recommendation of open standards, but no mention
of open licenses
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Mandates development of <http://data.gov.in/> portal, with
National Informatics Centre, Department of Electronics and IT,
as nodal agency for implementation

3. data.gov.in

4. data.gov.in: History
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Powered by Open Government Platform <ogpl.gov.in>, an
open source Drupal-based data and content management
system, developed by NIC in collaboration with the Office of
Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies, General Services
Administration, Government of United State of America
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Leverages and builds upon the best practices and features of
<data.gov> and <india.gov.in>
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First public version of the portal was launched on May 21, 2012
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Second version of the portal, moving from Drupal 6 to Drupal 7,
is about to be launched in near future

5. data.gov.in: Functions
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Unified catalog of datasets published by various central
government agencies, including both data stored at the data
portal itself and data stored in the server of the agency
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Users, both governmental and non-governmental, can browse
the dataset catalog, view the metadata, comment on and rank
various aspects of the dataset, create basic visualisations by
choosing variables from the dataset, download available
datasets and submit request for those that are not available yet
/
Data controllers from all government agencies can contribute,
edit, update datasets, and track related activities, including
comments and rankings

6. Government data/information policies in India
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Right to Information Act, 2005
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National e-Governance Plan, 2006
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National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy, 2012
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Office memo on 'Implementation of Suo Motu Disclosure
under Section 4 of RTI Act, 2005 – Issue of Guidelines', 2013
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Towards an expanded open (government) data agenda

7. What this has to do with Internet governance?
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In past, 'Internet governance implications of open data' has
largely focuses on issues of access and privacy
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Open government data and associated data-driven modes of
opening up governance restructures the professional skills and
cultural capital needed to engage with the state
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The threat of 'empowering the empowered' (Michael Gurstein)
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The threat of 'seeing like a geek' (Tom Slee) and 'solutionist'
(Evgeny Morozov) approaches to government reform
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Challenges of governance are not only challenges of data
gathering and processing

8. A provocation: Opening up Internet data
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If the citizens are governed (electronically) through Internet,
what rights the citizens should have upon Internet, the very
space and medium of governance?
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What types of open data about the Internet would allow for a
more democratic space of (electronic) governance?

9. Thank you very much.
Sumandro Chattapadhyay
HasGeek Media LLP
The Sarai Programme, CSDS
www.ajantriks.net
@ajantriks