New Delhi: The central government will begin enforcing the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act from October 1, Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Thursday.
The Act, passed by Parliament in August and signed by the President shortly after, seeks to ban all forms of online money-based games while encouraging e-sports and non-monetary online gaming. The law aims to address rising concerns about gambling addiction, financial fraud, and money laundering linked to real-money gaming apps.
Speaking ahead of the AI Impact Summit 2026, Vaishnaw said, “The rules will be promulgated with effect from October 1.”
He emphasised that the government had taken a consultative approach before finalising the rules, holding multiple rounds of discussions with the gaming industry, banks, and other stakeholders over the past three years.
“We have engaged with the industry and all possible stakeholders, even after the law was passed. We have finalised the rules after taking everyone’s input,” Vaishnaw said, assuring that the Centre would remain open to further consultation if the sector required additional time to comply.
One of the key concerns raised by online gaming platforms was how to refund unutilised money still lying in user accounts. Vaishnaw said the IT Ministry had worked with banks to resolve this issue ahead of the law’s implementation.
With the legislation now set to come into force, several real-money gaming companies including Dream11, My11Circle, WinZO, Zupee, and PokerBaazi have already suspended their money-based offerings.
The new law is expected to significantly reshape India’s online gaming landscape, striking a balance between regulating harmful betting activities and promoting e-sports as a legitimate industry.
