7-yr jail, Rs 100-crore fine for wrong depiction of India map

Wrong depiction of the map of India could land the violators in jail with a maximum term of seven years and fine up to Rs 100 crore. This measure has been envisaged by the government against the backdrop of instances, where certain social networking sites showed J&K and Arunachal Pradesh as part of Pakistan and China, respectively. Recently, ‘Twitter’ had shown the location of Kashmir in China and Jammu in Pakistan, triggering protests, after which it was corrected. 

According to the ‘The Geospatial Information Regulation Bill 2016’, it will be mandatory to take permission from a government authority before acquiring, disseminating, publishing or distributing any geospatial information of India.

“No person shall depict, disseminate, publish or distribute any wrong or false topographic information of India, including international boundaries through internet platforms or online services or in any electronic or physical form,” the Bill states.