Portal Policies

Welcome to Vikaspedia!

This multilingual collaborative knowledge sharing portal is a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India initiative to accelerate the availability and accessibility of digital information in Indian regional languages for citizen empowerment.

Please find below the Privacy policy and Terms of Use (collectively referred to as the “Policies”)  that govern our relationship with the users and others who visit the portal. Please be sure to read the following before accessing, using, or submitting information in the portal.

The policies may undergo changes at any time and the amended policies will be published in the portal.

Content Contribution, Moderation and Approval Policy

Content Contribution Process 

Content of this portal (“Content”) is being contributed by the approved Content Contributors, Experts and Expert Organizations in a consistent fashion to maintain uniformity and to bring in standardization along with associated metadata and keywords. In order to present the Content as per the requirement of the users, the Content is organized in a categorized manner and for efficient retrieval, a web-based Content Management System, having a user-friendly interface, has been used.

The Content in the portal goes through the entire life-cycle process of:

• Creation of the Content by the approved Content Contributors, Experts & Expert Organizations
• Content Modification by any of the approved Content Contributors, Experts & Expert Organizations
• Content Review by approved Content Reviewers, Experts & Expert Organizations
• Content Expiry based on its date of expiry as set by the Content Contributor/Reviewer
• Content Archival of out dated/expired Content

Once the Content is contributed, it undergoes appropriate review and moderation process prior to being published on the web portal. The moderation could be multilevel and is role based.

Different types of content in the portal:-

• Information resources - text, audio, video, images, files, etc
• User feedback and suggestions 

To the best possible extent, the content on web portal that is being managed in collaboration with various stakeholders and like minded individuals and organizations is maintained to be.

• Authentic
• Accurate
• Up-to-date
• Comprehensive
• Relevant
• Easy to understand
• Easy to find
• Easy to use
• Helpful and informative

Content Moderation Process

Stakeholder Roles and Responsibilities

a. Content contributor/Reviewer

Approved Content contributors are responsible for the words, style, presentation and layout of the Content.

Content Reviewers and identified experts/expert organizations are responsible for ensuring the accuracy, technical soundness, consistency in style and tone of content to the best possible extent and also ensuring that the Content adheres to applicable laws, regulations, and government policies and guidelines, as may be issued/amended from time to time. The workflow is kept as minimal as possible.

As the portal is a collaborative knowledge sharing platform, the content is available at every stage for the public to view, promoting transparency and knowledge dissemination. The Content is also accessible to the approved Content Contributors, experts and expert organizations for modifications, to ensure that the information remains authentic, accurate, up-to-date, and relevant.

b. Web Administrator / Manager 

• Overseeing the overall development and maintenance of the web portal.
• Ensuring compliance with relevant policies (organizational, regulatory, legislative, etc.) that may require changes in web portal’s Content, architecture, security and process.
• Conducting periodic security audit of web portal in line with major revisions, to identify vulnerabilities and ensure compliance with security standards.
• Analysis of traffic on web portal and providing feedback to Project management Unit (PMU).

c. Project Management Unit (PMU)

• Ensuring the publication of authentic and up-to-date information, to the best extent possible, to meet the relevant information needs of users of the portal.
• Assisting Web Administrator in establishing policies, conceptualizing and implementing processes related to the development, operation, management and content creation/ updating of the web portal and applications associated with it.
• Overseeing the dissemination of the information, user flow to the web portal, monitoring the performance of the portal in coordination with Web Administrator / Manager
• Engaging the authenticated Content Contributors for Content uploads, as well as authenticated language and subject matter experts for Content review and approval on the portal.
• Monitoring changes to relevant policies, schemes, acts, and rules, and coordinating updates on the web portal with Content contributors and Subject-Matter Experts to ensure that the web portal reflects the latest information.

Content Review Policy

To ensure the Content on the portal is authentic and up-to-date, a Content Review Policy is essential. Given the extensive scope of the Content, different Review Policies are defined for diverse content elements. Each Review Policy is based on different type of Content elements, its validity, relevance and the archival procedures. Most of the Content on the portal is contributed by the registered and authenticated contributors, Experts and Expert organizations.

As the portal framework supports collaborative Content creation, the Content is accessible for public viewing, and allows approved contributors, experts and expert organizations to edit and review the Content. Some part of the portal’s Content is classified as “Protected Content” and is not opened for editing / reviewing by the general public; only select authorized persons are permitted to edit or review such Content.

User suggestions and feedback are moderated by the PMU before making it available for public viewing.

The matrix below outlines the Content Review Policy:

The frequency of review of the above-mentioned data* shall be managed and conducted by the approved Contributors / Reviewers and by the PMU or identified Experts.

* : "Data" means a representation of information, knowledge, facts, concepts or instructions which are being prepared or have been prepared in a formalized manner, and is intended to be processed, is being processed or has been processed in a computer system or computer network, and may be in any form (including computer printouts magnetic or optical storage media, punched cards, punched tapes) or stored internally in the memory of the computer (as defined under Section 2(o) of the IT Act 2000)

Content Archival Policy

Each of the Content components of the portal is accompanied by metadata, source information and validity date. 

For some of the components, the validity date may not be known, in which case  the content is considered perpetual. This means that the content is intended to remain relevant and applicable indefinitely, without a predefined expiration date. However, under this scenario, a default validity period of 10 (ten) years shall be established. On completion of this 10 (ten) year validity period, the content shall be taken down and not be displayed on the website.However, while this classification allows the content to be available indefinitely, it does not eliminate the need for periodic reviews by the stakeholders as provided in clause 1.2.1  i.e. authenticated Content contributor/Reviewer, Web Administrator / Manager, Project Management Unit and authenticated language and subject-matter experts engaged by C-DAC.. Regular evaluations are essential to ensure that the information remains accurate and relevant, aligning with current standards or practices. These reviews can help identify changes in context, legal requirements, or best practices that may impact the content’s applicability. By classifying certain Content as perpetual, the portal aims to provide users with stable and reliable information. Nonetheless, stakeholders must remain vigilant in assessing its continued relevance to prevent the dissemination of outdated or misleading information.

1. For certain other components, such as announcements and news items, only the live content with a validity date after the current date will be displayed on the portal. This policy ensures that users receive the most current and relevant information, as outdated announcements and news items can mislead users about ongoing activities or developments.
2. For other components, including  documents, schemes, services, forms, referenced websites and the contact directory, timely reviews of the same are conducted as per the Content Review Policy. These reviews are crucial for maintaining the integrity and accuracy of the information provided to users.

Alerts are sent to the Content Contributor(s) 2 (two) weeks prior to the validity date to re-validate the Content, and if required, modify the validity date. In case of no response, a reminder will be sent 1 (one) week before the expiration of the validity date; thereafter the Content will be archived and removed from the public view on the portal, although the said Content will still be available for future retrieval.

The portal Content of Vikaspedia is regularly reviewed by authenticated members like Content Contributors, Reviewers, PMU and other experts & expert organizations as per adopted policies. Content in the portal has different Entry/Exit Policy and Archival Policy as enlisted below:-

Copyright Policy

Material featured on this Portal may be reproduced free of charge after taking proper permission by sending a mail to us at (vikaspedia@cdac.in). All reproductions must be accurate and must not to be used in a derogatory manner or in a misleading context. Wherever the material is being published or distributed or issued to others, the source must be prominently acknowledged. However, the permission to reproduce this material does not extend to any material identified as copyrighted by a third party. Authorisation to reproduce such material must be obtained directly from the respective institutions/copyright holders.

We will not be liable for any misuse or misrepresentation of the material reproduced from this portal. It is the responsibility of the user to ensure compliance with all applicable copyright laws and regulations.

Privacy Policy

We are committed to safeguarding the information (“Information”) you provide to us about yourself. This Privacy Policy is designed to inform you about our practices regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of Information that you may provide on this portal. By accessing or using this portal, you indicate that you have read and accepted our privacy practices, as outlined in this Privacy Policy, and constitutes your express consent to the same. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy, you can reach out to us using the contact details provided on the portal.

• Your Consent

By accessing or using this portal, you agree with the terms of this Privacy Policy. Whenever you submit information via this portal, you consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of that Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

• Active Information Collection

This portal actively collects Information from its users and visitors by allowing them to communicate directly with us via e-mail and feedback forms. Some of the Information that you submit may be personally identifiable information (that is, information that can be uniquely identified with you, such as your full name, address, e-mail address, phone number, and so on) (“Personal Information”/ “Personally Identifiable Information”). 

Certain areas of this portal may require you to submit Information in order for you to benefit from the specified features (such as notifications) and services. For instance, we may collect information from you when you: (i) login on the portal; (ii) logout from the portal; (iii) update or change personal details in your account; (iv) use the portal for any of the services being offered thereon; (v) download or update software; (vi) while rendering our services to you. You will be informed at each information collection point what Information is mandatorily required and what Information is optional.

• Passive/ Automatic Information Collection

As you navigate through the portal, certain Information will be passively/automatically collected (that is, gathered without you actively providing the Information) using various technologies and means, such as navigational data collection, cookies, web beacons (pixel tags), and such other technologies. Please understand that cookies and web beacons (pixel tags) are used to solely provide you complete user experience on the portal. No cookies or web beacons are used to collect any personal or sensitive personal data/ information about you.

This portal may use Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. An IP Address is a number assigned to your computer by your Internet service provider so you can access the Internet and is generally considered to be non-personally identifiable information, because in most cases an IP address is dynamic (changing each time you connect to the Internet), rather than static (unique to a particular user's computer). We use your IP address to diagnose problems with our server, report aggregate information, determine the fastest route for your computer to use in connecting to our portal, and administer and improve the portal.

Please also note that Information collected by us from a particular browser or device may be used with another computer or device that is linked to the browser or device on which such information was collected.

• Use and Disclosure of Information

Except as otherwise stated above, we may use your Information to enhance the utility of our portal, to communicate requested information (if any), for our marketing, analytical, and research purposes (where in such Information may be related to users demographics, interests and behavior), and for providing you with the latest information about products and services of some of our affiliates or third parties that we believe may be of interest to you. We may disclose the Information to respond to legal requirements, and such disclosures will be made in accordance with applicable laws and standards. Your right to choose is important to us, thus, if you do not wish to receive information about such products and services, you can reach out to us using the contact details provided on the portal.

If you have provided Personally Identifiable Information/Personal Information on this portal, we may combine such Personal Information with other actively collected Information, unless we specify otherwise at the point of collection. We will take reasonable measures to prevent Personally Identifiable Information from being combined with passively/automatically collected information, unless you consent otherwise.

We may disclose your Personally Identifiable Information to other C-DAC affiliates that agree to treat it in accordance with this Privacy Policy. In addition, we may disclose your Personally Identifiable Information to third parties, located in India, only in the following circumstances:

• To contractors and third parties we engage to support our business (e.g., fulfillment services, technical support, delivery services, and financial institutions), in which case we require such contractors and third parties to adhere to the terms of this Privacy Policy, and ensure the usage of such Personally Identifiable Information is strictly limited to the purposes for which it was collected and in accordance with applicable laws;
• in connection with the sale, assignment, or other transfer of the business of this portal, in which case we require the buyer to adhere to the terms of this Privacy Policy, that any and all Personally Identifiable Information is treated with the same level of confidentiality and protection as outlined herein; or
• Where required by applicable laws, court orders, or government regulations.

We may use your Non-Personal Information for internal business purposes, such as data analysis, research, developing/enhancing and/or improving our portal and our services, and in identifying usage trends and analytics. You agree that we may use such Non-Personal Information to improve our marketing and promotional efforts, to analyze site usage, improve the portal’s Content and product offerings, and customize the portal’s Content, layout, and services. These uses improve the portal and better tailor it to meet your needs, so as to provide you with a smooth, efficient, safe and customized experience while using the portal.

• Links from Other Websites

Websites linked on our portal may collect Personally Identifiable Information about you. The data protection practices of these third-party websites are not covered by this Privacy Policy. You are advised to check the data protection policies of these third-party websites yourself, before interacting with these websites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party sites. This Privacy Statement applies solely to information collected by this portal. Further, please note that some links may direct you to advertising partners or external content or external resources, and we do not endorse or take responsibility for the practices of those entities.

• Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your personally identifiable information as you transmit your information from your computer to our portal and to protect such information from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction.

We do not share or rent your Personally Identifiable Information with any third parties except our agents and alliance partners. While we strive to protect your Personal Information, we cannot ensure or warranty or guarantee the security of any information you transmit to us via the Internet, and you do so at your own risk. Once we have received your Information, we will use our best efforts to ensure its security on our systems.

• Children’s policy

Protecting children's privacy is important to us. For this reason, we ask that minors (under the age of 18 years) do not submit any Personal Information to us. For registration and access to services that are available only to registered users, children under the age of 18 (eighteen) years must seek the assistance and explicit consent of their legal guardian or parents registered as users on the portal. We strongly encourage legal guardians and/or parents to supervise any interactions minors have with the portal to ensure their safety and privacy, at all times. By accessing and using the portal as a minor, you warrant that you have obtained the necessary consent from your parent or legal guardian. We shall not be liable for any actions or consequences arising from the use of the portal by minors without proper parental supervision and consent. It is the responsibility of parents or legal guardians to ensure that minors use the portal in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, and we shall not be held responsible for any misuse of the portal by minors.

• Account Protection

Your password (including One Time Password (OTP) is the key to your account. Use a combination of unique numbers, letters and special characters, and do not disclose your password to anyone. If you do share your password or your Personal Information with others, you shall be solely responsible for all actions taken through your account. If you lose control of your password, you may lose substantial control over your Personal Information and may be subject to legally binding actions taken on your behalf. Therefore, if your password has been compromised for any reason, you should immediately use the 'Forgot your Password' link to change your password.

Portal Security Policy

To ensure the security of the portal and maintain service availability for all users, the network traffic is actively monitored to identify unauthorized attempts that may potentially cause damage to the Content/ Information. Unauthorized attempts to upload or change/alter information on the portal are strictly prohibited and may be punishable under the I.T. Act, 2000 (as amended from time to time) and the rules thereunder, Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 and the rules thereunder, and any other applicable laws.

The portal has been audited by CERT-In empanelled auditor and all the vulnerabilities have been addressed as of the date of publication of this Privacy Policy. Upon completion of the audit, a security clearance certificate of CERT-In empanelled auditor has been received.

Note: Periodic checks with respect to the portal's security as mentioned in the security certificate will be conducted to assess any changes in the functionality or any other environmental conditions.

Contingency Management

This multilingual collaborative knowledge sharing portal is a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India initiative to accelerate the availability and accessibility of digital information in Indian regional languages for citizen empowerment.

In view of the above mission, it is important that the portal remains fully functional and available at all times. Necessary actions will be implemented to ensure information and services are delivered on a 24x7 basis. All efforts shall be taken to minimize the downtime of the portal as far as possible.

In case of any defacement and/or data corruption, immediate action will be taken by the respective authorized personnel to restore the portal, subject to the availability of necessary resources and tools. These actions may include assessing the extent of the damage, implementing recovery protocols, and ensuring that all relevant data is secured and restored to its previous state. Additionally, a thorough investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the incident and to prevent future occurrences.

If the incident involves a compromise of Personally Identifiable Information, the affected individuals will be promptly notified about the breach, including details about the nature of the data compromised, actions taken by us to mitigate the consequences of the breach, and any recommended actions they should take to protect themselves.

Portal Monitoring Policy

Web being a dynamic medium, changes in terms of technologies, access devices and the requirements and expectation levels of the visitors occur frequently. To address these changes, we have established a portal monitoring policy, where the portal will be monitored periodically in accordance with the defined plan to address and rectify the quality and compatibility issues, including:

• Performance i.e. portal downtime and scheduled maintenance
• Functionality
• Broken links
• Traffic analysis to understand utility
• Visitor feedback that contributes to portal enhancement and web security

Generic Terms & Conditions

The multi-lingual portal, www.vikaspedia.in, aims to provide as far as possible reliable information and data, which is mostly openly sourced. However, C-DAC does not claim authorship of any of the data, and acknowledges that such data has been compiled from various sources, such as other websites, and content consortiums. Efforts are made to ensure that the content is as accurate as possible; however,opinions and views expressed in articles, write-ups sourced from websites and content partners on schemes, policies, etc, do not reflect C-DAC's official views or opinions.

• C-DAC expressly disclaims all warranties and / or conditions, expressed or implied, as to any matter whatsoever relating to or referenced by the portal, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties and/or conditions of merchantability or quality and fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement.
• In no event and under no circumstances whatsoever shall C-DAC be liable for damages of any kind (including, without limitation, direct, indirect, consequential, special, incidental, or exemplary damages or damages for loss of profits, business interruption, loss of information) arising out of the use of or inability to use the materials, even if C-DAC has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
• C-DAC also does not warrant that the functions contained in the materials will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that defects will be corrected. Furthermore, C-DAC does not guarantee or warrants that this portal or the server that makes it available are free of viruses or other harmful components.
• You understand and agree that any material downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the portal is solely at your own discretion and risk, and that you will be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or loss of data that results from the download of such materials.
• C-DAC does not provide any warranty regarding any goods/products or services obtained through the portal or any transactions entered through the portal.
• Under no circumstances shall C-DAC be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, special or consequential damages, resulting from:
  1. The access, use or the inability to use the portal.
  2. The cost of procurement of substitute goods/products and services resulting from any goods or services purchased or obtained or messages received or transactions entered into via the portal.
  3. The materials contained in or published on the portal.
  4. Any other matter related to the portal, even if C-DAC has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Disclaimer

All the information provided/Content published on the portal is subject to the condition that you make an independent determination regarding the accuracy, correctness, usefulness, and suitability, prior to using the same, and we assume no responsibility/liability for accuracy, correctness, usefulness, and suitability of the said Content. Further, we shall not be responsible in any manner, for the data provided, stored, or managed by you on the portal. The information/Content on the Platform may contain inaccuracies or typographical errors. While we shall make our best efforts to ensure that all the information/Content on the portal is correct and accurate, we make no warranties or representations with respect to the accuracy, quality, and correctness of the said information/Content. The entire information/Content on the portal is provided on ‘as is’ basis, without any warranty or guarantee of any kind, including but limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and suitability for a certain purpose, title, non-infringement, accuracy or security.

Indemnification 

You hereby agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless C-DAC (including its directors, officers, employees, representatives, agents, and affiliates) from time to time, against any and all losses, liabilities, obligations, damages, judgments, costs, expenses (including, without limitation, advisors’ fees), claims, fines, penalties, proceedings, actions or demands, of any kind or nature incurred by the C-DAC/caused to C-DAC on account of your use of the portal or the services, including but not limited to, the violation of the terms of these Policies. 

Change of Ownership

If the ownership or control of all or part of our portal or their assets changes, we may transfer your information to the new owner.

Legal Rights and Choices of Users 

Legal Rights

Under the applicable data protection law, you have the rights including:

• Your right of access - You have the right to ask us for copies of your Personal Information. 
• Your right to rectification - You have the right to ask us to rectify Personal Information you believe is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you believe is incomplete. However, you will be required to provide documentary evidence to substantiate the accuracy of the requested correction/rectification.
• Your right to erasure - You have the right to ask us to erase your Personal Information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to restriction of processing - You have the right to ask us to restrict the processing of your Personal Information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to object to processing - You have the right to object to the processing of your Personal Information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to data portability - You have the right to ask that we transfer the Personal Information you gave us, to another organization, or to you, in certain circumstances, whether in India or outside India, subject to the provisions of applicable laws.
• You are not required to pay any charge for exercising your rights. If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you. Please contact us using the details provided at the end of this Privacy Policy, if you wish to make a request.

Choice of Users

We aim to provide you with access to your data. Usually, you can autonomously control your data (e.g. by logging in to your account) and update, modify or, if legally possible, delete it.  In this case, we strongly encourage you to take control of your data. There may be situations where we are entitled to deny or restrict your rights, for example, when necessary to protect the rights and freedoms of other individuals, or refuse to delete your Personal Information in case the processing of such data is necessary to comply with legal obligations and/or to establish, exercise, or defend our self from legal claims.

You can always contact our Privacy Officer if you would like to:

• review, change or delete the data you have supplied to us;
• object to certain data processing operations (e.g., opt-out from marketing communications);
• receive a copy of your data (in a common machine-readable format, to the extent it is required by applicable law);
• ask us any other questions related to the protection of your data by us.

Data Privacy Officer 

For any questions or reasonable inquiry related to the protection of your data by us or regarding this Privacy Policy in general, you can contact our Data Privacy Officer:

• E-mail : mjitendra@cdac.in
• Contact No.: +91 9248920201
• Address: Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC)
  Plot No: 6&7, Hardware Park, Srisailam Highway, Raviryal (V & GP), Ranga Reddy district, Hyderabad – 501510, Telangana

Please keep in mind that email communications are not always secure. Therefore, please do not include sensitive information in your emails to us. We will do our best to address your request in time and free of charge, except where it would require a disproportionate effort. In certain cases, we may ask you to verify your identity before we can act on your request. If you are unsatisfied with the reply received, you may then refer your complaint to the relevant regulator in your jurisdiction.

Grievance Officer

In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the corresponding rules made thereunder, the name and contact details of our Grievance Officer are provided below.

Name: Ms Vijayalakshmi B
Address: Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC)
Plot No: 6&7, Hardware Park, Srisailam Highway, Raviryal (V & GP), Ranga Reddy district, Hyderabad – 501510, Telangana
E-mail Address: vijayab@cdac.in
Contact No.: +91 40 29564873

Such person will be responsible for addressing any of your discrepancies and grievances, as expeditiously as possible, but not more than one month from the date of receipt of such grievance.

Update to the Privacy Policy

The most current version of this Privacy Policy document will govern our use of your data and can be found on our portal. We reserve the right to update this Privacy Policy, at any time, and we will make an updated copy of such Privacy Policy available to you and notify you when we make any substantial updates.

Further Information

This Privacy Policy is not an exhaustive account of all aspects of our collection and use of Personal Information. If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Contact Us

For information about how to contact us, please visit our Contact Page.