Science & Tech · AI · 1 hr ago
MeitY proposes privacy-led framework for sharing data to train AI
India’s IT ministry, MeitY, has proposed a consent-based framework for AI training data called DEPA for AI training.
It is intended to help startups, businesses and academic institutions access large, India-specific datasets while protecting people’s privacy and complying with India’s data protection law.
Under the proposal, organisations could train models together without transferring raw data to one another.
Secure computing environments and privacy techniques would limit exposure of personal information, while electronic contracts would set rules for data use.
Independent checks would test models for bias, fairness and safety before they could be approved for pilot use or wider deployment.
Monitoring and reviews would continue after deployment to support accountability.
The framework was developed with think tank iSPIRT, but the available information does not say when it will be put into effect.
MeitY has proposed a consent-based framework for sharing data to train AI models in India.
The Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture (DEPA) for AI training aims to give startups, businesses and academic institutions access to large-scale, India-specific datasets while protecting privacy.
The proposal would let organisations collaborate on AI training without directly transferring underlying datasets.
It includes privacy and security measures such as confidential clean rooms, differential privacy, electronic contracts and zero-trust security.
Trained models would face independent checks for bias, fairness, security, safety and explainability before pilot deployment or scaling.
- Who
- India’s IT ministry, MeitY, proposed the framework in collaboration with think tank iSPIRT.
- What
- A consent-based framework to share data for training AI models while protecting privacy.
- When
- Inc42 published its report on October 30, 2026; an exact proposal date is not stated.
- Where
- India.
- Why
- To help startups, businesses and academic institutions access large-scale, India-specific datasets for AI development while protecting citizens’ privacy and supporting compliance with the DPDP Act.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
This story does not have a timeline yet.
- Framework
- Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture (DEPA) for AI training
- Lead ministry
- MeitY, India’s IT ministry
- Collaborator
- iSPIRT
- Privacy measure
- Differential privacy
- Model checks
- Bias, fairness, security, safety and explainability
- Earlier DEPA example
- Account Aggregator