‘Making India Hub For Gaming’: PM Modi Hails Passage Of Online Gaming Bill

Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the passage of the Online Gaming Bill, which aims to crack down on money-based gaming in the country, in Parliament on Thursday.

“This Bill highlights our commitment towards making India a hub for gaming, innovation and creativity,” he said in a post on X, adding that e-sports and online social games are set to see a boost.

Modi emphasised that the bill “will save our society from the harmful effects of online money games”.

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The legislation prohibits advertising or endorsements of platforms facilitating online games that involve monetary transactions. It proposes to bar banks, as well as non-banking financial bodies, from facilitating any transaction involving online money games. According to sources, the decision followed three and a half years of deliberations.

The rise of in-app purchases, virtual currencies and reward systems has only blurred these legal boundaries further, creating the need for a centralised framework.

Concerns like addiction among children and youth, mental health issues, financial losses, cross-border and inter-state operations facilitating in some cases of money laundering and terror financing form some of the focal points of the Bill, said sources.

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Penalties proposed under the Bill include up to three years in prison and a fine of Rs 1 crore for any person offering online money gaming services. Those involved in advertising or endorsing such platforms may face up to two years in jail along with a Rs 50 lakh fine.

Similarly, anyone facilitating transactions or fund transfers for online gaming could face three years of imprisonment and penalties up to Rs 1 crore.

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