Delhi, July 22: The Central Government has disabled 50 OTT platforms for public access in India in last two years for displaying obscene content. The Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

In a written reply to a query of Rajabhau Parag Prakash Waje, Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs Dr. L. Murugan informed the House that based on complaints, the Government regularly takes action against such intermediaries and OTT platforms.

“The Government has disabled 50 OTT platforms for public access in India in last two years for displaying obscene content and for violation of Section 67 and 67A of the IT Act, Section 294 of the BNS, and Section 4 of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986,” the Minister told the House.

The Government has notified the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media, Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 on 25.02.2021 under IT Act, 2000 to put in place an institutional mechanism for publishers of current affairs on digital media and publishers of online curated content (OTT Platforms), he said.

The Minister further informed the House that Part-III of the rules provides for a Code of Ethics for digital news publishers and publishers of online curated content (OTT platforms). Complaints are addressed under the provisions of the IT Rules, 2021.

Similarly, Section 79(3)(b) of IT Act, 2000 provides for notification to the intermediaries for removing/disabling access to unlawful content, he added.