AI law to be made after two years

Experts have expressed concern over the government's proposal to enact laws on AI after two years, which failed to regulate earlier technologies such as social networks.

Under the title of 'Proposed Action Plan' of Chapter 5 of the concept paper, it is mentioned that a policy related to AI will be formulated within 6 months with the support of the Office of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, the Electronic Governance Commission, the relevant ministries and the Nepal Telecommunication Authority. It is expected that Nepal's AI-related priorities will be determined after this agency formulates an AI strategy within a year. For the Act related to AI, a period of 2 years has been fixed in the concept paper. A time period of 3 years has been proposed for the development of the necessary infrastructure for the use of AI.

'Technology has advanced a lot in two years, the issue of AI should not be treated like previous technology, it is a very sophisticated technology, it is not possible to predict how it will develop in the future,' said Manohar Bhattarai, an information technology expert, 'AI only from the point of view of regulation. Legislation should not be dictated. Because its benefits are also abundant. We need to determine where we stand in the AI ​​revolution. A law should be made as soon as possible so that its side effects are minimized and the issue of truth is not compromised.

The committee formed under the coordination of Joint Secretary Anil Kumar Dutt, Head of the Information Technology Division of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, handed over the concept paper of AI to the Ministry on Sunday. Joint Secretary Dutt said that it will be kept on the Ministry's website for further updating. Narayan Timilsina, Deputy Secretary (Technical) of the Ministry, Pavitra Dangol, Director of Information Technology Department, Baburam Dawadi, Associate Professor of Pulchok Engineering Campus, and Suryaprakash Upadhyay, Computer Engineer of the Ministry, were involved in the committee.

'In which areas of Nepal AI can be used, how it has been assimilated in other countries, what is the state of regulation, what are the benefits and challenges of AI, we have made this concept paper,' said coordinator Dutta. Dutt said that 'Idle period' of two years has been proposed as it will take time to formulate the law. He says that the law can be made even before the concept paper points out.

In the concept paper, it is pointed out that technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), 5G/SixG, software-based network, full Faber network, graphic processing unit (GPU) infrastructure should be expanded as basic infrastructure for AI. For this, the relevant ministries, Nepal Telecommunication Authority, provinces and local levels have been designated as the responsible bodies.

It is stated in the proposed action plan that the nodal agency designated by the Ministry of Communication will prepare technical standards (standards) for the use of AI within 2 years. The agency has been tasked with developing an integrated national portal and national project on AI. It is mentioned in the concept paper that a nodal agency is also needed for spreading literacy about AI and for research and development.

The concept paper is expected to use AI in relation to economic growth and governance. 'Now we are using machines for information processing. But in the future, machines are not only doing information processing, but also making decisions themselves," said Bhattarai, a technologist, "that's why this is a sensitive issue. AI techniques like DeepFake are creating confusion about what is true. The concept paper on AI should include the topic that the use of AI should be transparent.'

The government has included the topic of AI regulation in the policies and programs and budget of the next financial year. Narayan Timilsina, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry, said that this concept paper has been prepared as mentioned in the budget for the development, promotion and regulation of artificial intelligence (AI). "This concept paper has been prepared in the first stage of budget implementation, after this the government will also proceed with policy formulation," he said, "After the nodal agency is appointed, it will be easier for other activities from making laws related to AI."