Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday said that the rules under the Promotion and Regulation of Online Games Act, 2025, will take effect on October 1.After the bill was passed by the Parliament, the government resumed talks with stakeholders, such as banks, gaming companies, and other organisations, the minister said.
Vaishnaw said that the government had been in talks with industry stakeholders for almost three years. He emphasised that the government is willing to give additional time if the industry requests it and mentioned that a final round of consultations will take place before implementation starts.
“For almost everything we do, our government believes in a highly consultative process,” he stated.
The act, which was notified on August 22, outlaws online real-money games in India, whether they are categorised as skill or chance games.
It is now illegal to offer or take part in such games, and there is no bail.
A major change from previous regulations, which were primarily influenced by state laws and court rulings that distinguished skill-based games from gambling, the legislation was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 20 and passed in two days.
Earlier on Thursday, the Minister, at a pre-event of the AI Impact Summit 2026, announced that the government will establish over 500 data labs nationwide as part of the ‘India AI Mission’ to increase artificial intelligence (AI) talent and infrastructure.