In breach of privacy, auto value chain data sold to pvt parties

Agencies
September 20, 2019

Mumbai, Sept 20: With data privacy now becoming hot button, breaches too are common place. However, when the government itself decides to wilfully use data to generate revenue, then questions of propriety are raised for this is proprietary data with the right to it and ownership of it vested with the individual. With the government looking to monetise data, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had revealed in Parliament recently that the government is selling vehicle registration and driving licence data of Indians and earning money from it. It is not known whether this decision was ratified by the Law Ministry since issues of privacy are involved.

Replying to a query posed by Congress MP Husain Dalwa, who asked if the government has intended to sell Vahan and Sarathi database in bulk (and) if so, the estimated value for the sale, Gadkari stated that it has provided 87 private and 32 government entities access to Vahan and Sarathi database which has yielded a revenue of Rs 65 crore so far. This is peanuts for the breach involves giving access to tele marketers, leading to widespread harassment, DND (do not disturb) be damned.

If you want to know why the frequency of car manufacturers, financiers and insurers tele calls is rising, then Mr Gadkari is partly to blame for it. More and more people are being inundated with phone calls on topups or loans against owned cars or purchase of upgrades and the reason behind it is that data has been made freely available to a slew of people connected to the auto industry.

An IANS investigation has found that manufacturers Toyota Kirloskar, Tata Motors, Volkswagen India, Indo Farm Equipment manufacturer of tractors, pick n carry cranes, rotary tillers and harvestors; banks like Stan Chart, SBI, Banaskantha Mercantile Coop Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC Bank, Indus India Bank and Kotak Mahindra bank and vehicle financing companies like Khushbhu Auto Finance, Kanak Durga Finance, John Dere Financial Services, India Infoline Financial, Home Credit India Finance, Hinduja Leyland Finance, Hero Fin Corp, HBD Financial Services and insurers HDFC Ergo General Insurance, ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co, Sundaram Finance, Suryoday Small Finance, Tata Capital Financial Services, Oriental General Insurance, TVS Credit Services are the bulk buyers of the data. These are some of the buyers till date and they represent virtually the entire automobile food chain.

The Vahan and Sarathi ministry maintains the Centralized National Registry through the National Informatics Centre and it contains approximately 25 crore vehicle registration records and 15 crore driving licence records. For the same, the Road Transport and Highways Ministry has also created "Bulk Data Sharing Policy & Procedure".

In Parliament, Gadkari had added that organizations seeking bulk data could obtain it at a price of Rs 3 crore. According to him, education institutes seeking the data could obtain it for "research purposes and internal use only" for a price of Rs 5 lakh.

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Agencies
June 7,2020

New Delhi, Jun 7: A day after India and China military commanders held "cordial and positive" talks at Chushul-Moldo point along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh, Ministry of External Affairs said the two countries have agreed to "peacefully" resolve the situation in the border areas by continuing the military and diplomatic engagements.

The Indian delegation led by 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen Harinder Singh on Saturday met his Chinese equivalent Maj Gen Liu Lin, who is the commander of South Xinjiang Military Region of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, to address the ongoing tussle in Eastern Ladakh.

In a statement on Sunday, the MEA said that the meeting between the Corps Commander based in Leh and the Chinese Commander took place in a "cordial and positive atmosphere".

"Both sides agreed to peacefully resolve the situation in the border areas in accordance with various bilateral agreements and keeping in view the agreement between the leaders that peace and tranquillity in the India-China border regions is essential for the overall development of bilateral relations," the statement read.

They also noted that this year marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries and agreed that an early resolution would contribute to the further development of the relationship.

"Accordingly, the two sides will continue the military and diplomatic engagements to resolve the situation and to ensure peace and tranquillity in the border areas," it further read.

China has moved its troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Eastern Ladakh areas including the Finger area, Pangong Tso Lake, and Galwan Nala area.

The meeting between military commanders was to discuss and resolve the stand-off in Eastern Ladakh.

Following the meeting, the Army Headquarters' Directorate General of Military Operations also briefed the Ministry of External Affairs and other concerned government officials about the discussions.

On Friday, officials of India and China interacted through video-conferencing with the two sides agreeing that they should handle "their differences through peaceful discussion" while respecting each other's sensitivities and concerns and not allowing them to become disputes in accordance with the guidance provided by the leadership.

In the last few days, there has not been any major movement of the PLA troops at the multiple sites where it has stationed itself along the LAC opposite Indian forces.

The Chinese Army's intent to carry out deeper incursions was checked by the Indian security forces by quick deployment.

The Chinese have also brought in heavy vehicles with artillery guns and infantry combat vehicles in their rear positions close to the Indian territory.

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News Network
July 16,2020

Noida, Jul 16: A key aide of 1993 Mumbai blasts case convict Abu Salem who worked in his illegal property business in NCT of Delhi has been arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Uttar Pradesh police, officials said on Thursday.

Gajendra Singh, who was also close to gangster Khan Mubarak, was nabbed in Mumbai late Wednesday night by the Noida unit of the STF, they said.

"Gajendra Singh had taken Rs 1.80 crore from a Delhi-based businessman in 2014 in a property-related case. When he was pressured to return the money, Singh had Khan Mubarak's shooters open fire at the businessman in sector 18 of Noida," Additional Superintendent of Police, STF, Raj Kumar Mishra said.

The businessman was in his car when the attack took place, and he narrowly escaped, the officials said.

Mishra said Singh had paid the shooters Rs 10 lakh, and the agency has cracked the money trail of the transaction.

"Gajendra Singh also invested Abu Salem and Khan Mubarak's money into properties in Delhi-NCR," the officer added.

Singh was wanted in a couple of cases registered at a police station in Noida where he has been lodged now for further proceedings, the STF said. 

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News Network
January 29,2020

Mumbai, Jan 29: Unfazed by his suspension from flying on Tuesday, stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra on Wednesday claimed that he once again approached television journalist Arnab Goswami, who he said was his co-passenger on a flight from Lucknow, for an "honest discussion" but was turned away.

Kamra tweeted in the morning that "Arnab Goswami was again travelling in his flight while returning from Lucknow". "I again asked him politely if he wants to have a honest discussion he with his verbal arrogant hand jester he asked me to move away & I did that (sic)," he tweeted.

The comedian was suspended from flying by IndiGo and Air India on Tuesday after he allegedly heckled Goswami aboard a Mumbai-Lucknow plane and posted a video clip on his Twitter handle.

While IndiGo suspended Kamra from flying with it for a period of six months, Air India banned him until further notice.

In a statement released on Twitter after he posted the video, Kamra said he did "exactly what Republic TV journalists do to people in their private/public spaces". Kamra stated he had not done anything criminal by allegedly heckling Goswami.

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