NLS Faculty Seminar | ‘A Genealogy of Data Regulation in India’

We kicked-off the first NLS faculty seminar of the second trimester of AY 2025-26 with a presentation by Dr. Manpreet Singh Dhillon, Assistant Professor, Public Policy, on his paper titled ‘A Genealogy of Data Regulation in India.’ The seminar was held on November 5, 2025.

Abstract

This paper employs a genealogical approach to trace the formation of data regulation in India, examining how shifting relations of power, knowledge, and governance have shaped the field. Through a close study of government reports, committee recommendations, legislative debates, and policy documents, it reconstructs the discontinuities and struggles over meaning, authority, and legitimacy that define data governance as a distinct domain in India’s political and economic history.

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