The Indian government has officially rejected Google Street View from operating in the country due to security reasons. The popular tool has been around for years and posts 360-degree and panoramic images of places.
Google was seeking permission from the government to cover Indian territory in Google Street View, capturing cities, tourists spots, hills and rivers. While that sounds like a positive thing which could help promote tourism here, the government saw it in a different light.
Specifically, the administration is being cautious when it comes to such image-capturing activities because of the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai. The photographic reconnaissance of the targets were carried out by Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley.
In theory, this could translate to terrorists using Google Street View to carry out their own surveillance without having to lift a finger. This belief seems to have been strong enough for the Home Ministry to summarily reject the plan. Official sources told PTI that the snub came about after a detailed anlaysis by security agencies and the defense department.
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All hope is not lost, however, since the government may reconsider Google’s proposal once the terms of the proposed Geospatial Information Regulation Bill are hammered out. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju had said as much when controversy over the law had blown up.
Google has already launched Street View in India on an experimental basis. The tool covers a few famous landmarks like the Taj Mahal, Nalanda University, Qutub Minar, Red Fort, Chinnaswamy stadium, Thanjavur temple, Mysore Palace and Varanasi river bank.