Indian Government is now determined to ban all types of pornography websites in India. They have asked various Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to create a blueprint, upgrade their infrastructure and implement a nation-wide ban on porn related websites.
As per the
report by ET, they have also asked Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) for assistance.
The government has proposed a comprehensive anti-porn plan:
Step 1: Identify all pornographic websites which are currently accessible in India, especially those dealing with child pornography.
Step 2: Ensure mass blocking of these websites, directly from ISP’s end.
Step 3: ISPs should ensure that such large scale blocking doesn’t slow down the Internet, as it happened in the past.
In a closed door meeting in September, chaired by Telecom & IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and attended by important officials from ministry, the ‘porn problem’ was discussed in length, and strategies were formulated to implement this nation-wide ban on pornography websites.
Ravi Shankar was
quoted as saying that although porn is legal in other countries, this issue should be observed in the “context of Indian culture and moral obligation towards society”.
In the month of June this year, Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) had informed the Supreme Court that they are
not able to ban pornography websites, without any legal or infrastructural support from the government.
In their affidavit, they had stated, “It is impossible for an ISP to block pornographic sites without orders from the court or department of telecom (DoT). While ISPs are legally bound to comply with all orders to block pornographic or other websites as suggested by DoT, the task of identifying such websites ought not to be left to ISPs who lack institutional and logistical capacity to do the identification.”
The Supreme Court has asked the Department of Telecom to file its reply. The latest round of meetings and creation of blueprint is with regards to the same directives as issued by Supreme Court. It is expected that the Government will come out with a concrete policy governing the access of porn by the end of this month.
The main contention and reasoning behind this ban is the fear that porn promotes and encourages sexual violence against women; porn is a bad influence on young boys; and our culture and tradition is threatened.
The Political Angle
BJP, the party which has absolute powers at the center, and is considered to be close to Hindu organizations such as RSS and Bajrang Dal, has also proposed a complete ban on porn in India.
As per reports, Arvind Gupta, head of BJP’s information technology cell was also present in the meeting, and he quoted: “A solution may need to be worked out to prevent availability of pornography on the Internet considering the cultural sensitivities of the country,”
BJP is known to take a hard stand on issues which is considered ‘western’ and ‘anti-India’, and the latest diktat from the political party to the Government is being seen as an extension of this propaganda.
The Present Porn Situation In India
The rules, just like the minds of those who are seeking a ban, are complex to say the least. As per
Wikipedia, “In India, watching or possessing pornographic materials is legal, although the distribution of such materials is illegal. Likewise, the publication or production of X-rated materials is illegal.”
Hence, an Indian can safely watch porn on his computer or TV, but cannot produce and publish such content. But considering that none of the 40 million+ porn websites available on the Internet has its base in India, it is becoming very tough for the Government to implement the ban.
My View
India has given birth to Kamasutra and Erotic Art as seen in temples such as Khajuraho and Ajanta-Ellora. Do we really believe that our culture and tradition didn’t had an element of sex in them?
How did we collectively produce 1.2 billion people?
Are we so scared of pornographic websites that we need to ban them?
Does viewing porn encourages a person to rape or makes him understand this basic human necessity in a better way?
There are lots of questions and very few answers. But unfortunately, the Indian Government is not concerned with these questions, and instead, is trying to ban something which they are not able to understand.
Porn, is not the problem, it’s the mindset which needs a change.
Do share your views about banning of porn in India: Is the Government right in deciding what we should access on the Internet and what we shouldn’t? Do share your views by commenting right here!
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