The Centre’s controversial proposal to set up a social media communication hub appears to be headed for a quiet burial. Public sector firm Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Ltd., which is supposed to be handling the project, has extended the last date for tenders. This is the fourth time the date has been extended.
Originally, the BECIL had called for submission of bids for supply of software for the hub by May 17; the date was then extended to May 24, then again to May 31 and then to June 18. Now it has been extended to August 20.
According to sources, the government, on all the four occasions, did not get enough bids.
Sources also said that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has started having a rethink on the entire project.
Time to study project
After the new Information and Broadcasting secretary, Amit Khare, took over, he asked the tender to be put on hold for a few days, asking for time to study the project. He wanted to specifically understand how the information collected by the hub would be put to use.
The proposal to set up such a hub had turned controversial, as many called it an indirect measure to “snoop” on and influence voters. The hub proposes to monitor social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and even email) handles at the very local level in multiple languages to carry out “sentiment analysis”, track down the influence-making social media users and to categorise the conversations on social media into positive, negative and neutral sections.
It also aimed to track real time the way social media receives news on government’s schemes and announcements and also political events.
Under the project, media persons would be employed on a contractual basis in each district to be the “eyes and ears” of the government.
The proposal also said the hub requires tools to be able to “listen to email” and assist the government in tailoring campaigns to promote “positive opinions and neutralise negative sentiments” about government schemes.
There was no reply to queries sent by The Hindu to both, the BECIL and secretary, Information and Broadcasting.
