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MeitY planning to meet PTA and schools to discuss draft gaming rules

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The Ministry of Electronics and Information and Technology (MeitY) will likely meet the parent-teacher associations (PTA) and school this week to discuss the draft gaming rules proposed on 2 January.

Later it is planning to meet non-government associations, policy groups, as well as doctors, including psychologists. During all the meetings, a discussion regarding various aspects of online gaming is expected, including limiting gaming hours for children.

“We are also looking at the larger issue of addiction. While we have asked the industry to take the lead and form a self-regulatory organization (SRO)to deal with these issues for now, we will need laws to deal with violations. These inputs will be considered when drafting the Digital India Act,” a senior government official told ET.

The meeting was revealed by Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Minister of State (MoS), MeitY, a few days ago. Along with the aforementioned organizations, MeitY is also planning to meet gaming companies and think tanks to discuss the same.

The draft rules were proposed to ensure the proper regulation of the online gaming sector and included universal rules like mandatory KYC verification of players, RNG certifications, SRO for online gaming firms, the requirement of a physical office in India and many more important regulations.

Now that esports is also a part of multi-sports events, regulation of online gaming is a must; the draft gaming rules will ensure the same rules across all states and aims to have a clear-cut definition of games of skills and games of chance.

The draft rules also encourage suggestions and improvements from the public to make online gaming as secure as possible for players in the country. The rules are also aimed at maintaining online gaming companies and the games they offer and putting a stop to illegal offshore gambling operators.

According to Chandrasekhar, the rules are to be finalized by early February, as the government wants to develop the online gaming industry while preserving players’ rights.

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