‘Families were shaken up’: FM Sitharaman on why govt brought law on online gaming

Nirmala Sitharaman

The government has introduced a new law to regulate online gaming in order to protect families, especially children, from its ill effects, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.

In an interview to Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, Sitharaman said, the new law was the need of the hour.

“We have not banned games for recreational purposes, it is only when you start betting with money. It is question of number of people who said that families were shaken up and children could not be controlled from temptation,” she said, in response to a question over the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, recently passed by the Parliament.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 bars all forms of online money games while promoting e-sports and other online games.

The Act seeks to prohibit advertisements related to online money games and bars banks and financial institutions from transferring funds for any of such games.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there are huge job opportunities in online gaming market and urged teachers to sensitise students about opportunities in the sector which can be tapped.

"Gaming is not bad but gambling is...future of our youth must be safeguarded," Modi said.

"We introduced a new online gaming law...all teachers must now sensitise students that gaming and gambling are different. This is a big decision that we have taken and many forces did not want us to ban online gambling but our government has the political will and intent to protect future of youth," the Prime Minister said.

"There are many games with which students were impressed and affected, money was being wasted, even housewives had begun to try them. The losses were driving people to suicide, it became like an addiction which was destroying families as people were being trapped," he added further.