The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), under the IndiaAI Mission, today unveiled the India AI Governance Guidelines, a comprehensive framework to ensure safe, inclusive, and responsible AI adoption across sectors.

The guidelines were formally unveiled by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, in the presence of Shri S. Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY; Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY, CEO IndiaAI Mission, DG NIC; Ms. Kavita Bhatia, Scientist ‘G’ & GC, MeitY & COO IndiaAI Mission and Prof. B. Ravindran, IIT Madras. The event also saw the participation of Dr. Preeti Banzal, Adviser & Scientist ‘G’, and Dr. Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, both from the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.

The launch marks a key milestone ahead of the India–AI Impact Summit 2026, as India strengthens its leadership in responsible AI governance.

The guidelines propose a robust governance framework to foster cutting-edge innovation, and safely develop and deploy AI for all while mitigating risks to individuals and society. The framework comprises four key components:

• Seven guiding principles (Sutras) for ethical and responsible AI.
• Key recommendations across six pillars of AI governance.
• An action plan mapped to short, medium, and long-term timelines.
• Practical guidelines for industry, developers, and regulators to ensure transparent and accountable AI deployment.

On this occasion, Shri S. Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY, added, “Our focus remains on using existing legislation wherever possible. At the heart of it all is human centricity, ensuring AI serves humanity and benefits people’s lives while addressing potential harms.” He congratulated the winners.”

Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, said, “The guiding principle that defines the spirit of the framework is simple, ‘Do No Harm’. We focus on creating sandboxes for innovation and on ensuring risk mitigation within a flexible, adaptive system. The IndiaAI Mission will enable this ecosystem and inspire many nations, especially across the Global South."

Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY, CEO IndiaAI, and DG NIC said, “The committee went through extensive deliberations and prepared a draft report, which was opened for public consultation. The inputs received is a clear sign of strong engagement across sectors. As AI continues to evolve rapidly, a second committee was formed to review these inputs and refine the final guidelines. The Government of India remains focused on ensuring that AI is accessible, affordable, and inclusive, while promoting a safe, trustworthy, and responsible ecosystem that fuels innovation and strengthens the AI economy.”

The guidelines have been drafted by a high-level committee under the chairmanship of Prof. Balaraman Ravindran, IIT Madras, comprising policy experts including Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY; Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog; Dr. Kalika Bali, Senior Principal Researcher, Microsoft Research India; Mr. Rahul Matthan, Partner, Trilegal; Mr. Amlan Mohanty, Non-Resident Fellow, NITI Aayog; Mr. Sharad Sharma, Co-founder, iSPIRT Foundation; Ms. Kavita Bhatia, Scientist ‘G’ & GC, MeitY & COO IndiaAI Mission; Mr. Abhishek Aggarwal, Scientist D, MeitY & Mr. Avinash Agarwal, DDG (IR), DoT, Ms. Shreeppriya Gopalakrishnan, DGM, IndiaAI.

These are envisioned as a foundational reference for policymakers, researchers, and industry to foster greater national and international cooperation for safe, responsible, and inclusive AI adoption. The report may be accessed at http://indiaai.gov.in/  or here

Additionally, winners of the IndiaAI Hackathon for Mineral Targeting, organised under the Applications Development Pillar of the IndiaAI Mission in collaboration with the Geological Survey of India (GSI), Ministry of Mines, were also announced. The hackathon aimed to leverage AI and ML to advance mineral prognostication by analysing geological, geophysical, geochemical, and remote-sensing data. The winning teams were recognised for their outstanding AI-driven solutions:

• First Prize (₹10 lakh): CricSM AI: Critical and strategic mineral mapping with AI by Prof. Partha Pratim Mandal, Dinesh Munda, Litan Dutta, Tanmay Singh, Sai Satyam Jena and Dr. Pradeep Kumar Shukla
• Second Prize (₹7 lakh): Knowledge and Data-Driven Mineral Targeting Approach by Soumya Mitra, Saptarshi Mallick, Kshounish Patra, and Santu Biswas
• Third Prize (₹5 lakh): SUVARN: Semi-Unsupervised Value-adaptive Artificial Resource Network by Sayantani Bhattacharya, Dr. Sabyasachi Nag, Arun A, and Yavthish Kannaa G S
• Special Prize (₹5 lakh): Encouraging AI and ML solution for Identification of new potential areas for exploration of critical minerals like REE, Ni-PGE and Copper, as well as other commodities like diamond, iron, manganes,e and gold by Deepa Kumari, Anamika Choudhary, and Sandhya Jagannathan

The announcements mark an important milestone in India’s journey towards fostering safe, inclusive, and scalable AI innovation, as the country prepares to host the India AI Impact Summit 2026 on 19–20 February 2026 in New Delhi. The Summit will convene global leaders, policymakers, industry experts, and researchers to deliberate on the transformative role of AI in driving People, Planet, and Progress.

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Dharmendra Tewari\Navin Sreejith