“Data protection is no longer a technological issue but a fundamental governance challenge.” Discuss.

Overview

Data is now an essential public resource due to the quick growth of digital services in welfare, health, finance, and governance. Because of this, data protection is now at the core of institutional responsibility, public trust, and constitutional rights, going far beyond firewalls and encryption.

From Governance to Technology

Data protection first concentrated on IT procedures and cybersecurity techniques. These days, the problem is more complex: determining who can gather data, how it can be used, what rights citizens have, and how to stop abuse. These are not only technological issues; they are fundamentally governance issues including law, ethics, and administrative capability.

The Constitutional Perspective and Citizen Rights

Data protection became a constitutional obligation of the State after the Supreme Court’s ruling in Puttaswamy (2017) established privacy as a fundamental right. The government manages enormous amounts of sensitive data through Aadhaar-linked welfare, digital health IDs, and e-governance systems. Better servers alone are no longer sufficient to protect this data; strong institutions, open procedures, and accountability systems are also needed.

Administrative and Institutional Difficulties

The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (2023) establishes a new framework for consent, data handling, and complaint resolution. However, these legal requirements can only be implemented with substantial administrative competence on the ground. This comprises frequent audits of government databases, good ministry cooperation, powerful enforcement bodies, and data governance-trained people. The situation becomes increasingly more complex as technologies like as artificial intelligence, large-scale data analytics, and multinational data exchanges rapidly expand, posing new administrative and regulatory challenges to the state.

UPSC General Studies Paper Preparation

Public Administration Optional Exam Preparation

About the Author: Jyoti Verma