1. About This Policy
Public of Uttarakhand is a private citizen newsroom and news-aggregation platform. It is not affiliated with any government body, ministry, or official institution. This Content Policy applies to every submission made through the Platform, whether by a free registered user, a Paid Member, or a guest tipster, and forms part of our Terms of Use. Publishing any submission is entirely at our editorial discretion, and paying the Paid Membership fee does not, by itself, entitle you to publication (see Terms of Use, Clause 7).
2. What We Allow
- Factual, first-person civic reporting with verifiable evidence.
- Community awareness, public-safety alerts, and public-interest stories.
- State- and district-level news reporting with sourced, attributable information.
- Anonymous tips, subject to our internal identity verification of the submitter (identity is kept confidential, not published, per our Privacy Policy).
- Hindi and English language content; other regional languages of Uttarakhand may be accepted at our discretion.
- Clearly labelled opinion, analysis, or first-person commentary, provided it is not presented as verified fact.
3. What We Reject (Zero Tolerance)
- Hate speech: content promoting enmity, hatred, or ill-will between religious, caste, gender, regional, linguistic, or ethnic groups, or that is punishable under provisions relating to promoting enmity between groups and outraging religious feelings under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (successor to the Indian Penal Code, 1860).
- Doxxing: publishing phone numbers, home addresses, Aadhaar/PAN/other ID numbers, bank/financial details, or other personal identifiers of any individual without lawful basis and explicit consent.
- Harassment & threats: content targeting, threatening, stalking, or intimidating any individual or group, including cyberstalking and cyberbullying.
- Fake or manipulated evidence: doctored, AI-generated/deepfake, or fabricated photos, videos, audio, or screenshots presented as genuine, and misinformation/disinformation likely to cause public alarm, especially content prohibited under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 during declared emergencies.
- Defamation: unverified allegations of criminal or immoral conduct against any identifiable person or entity, presented as established fact, in violation of civil defamation law and criminal defamation provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
- Sub-judice / contempt: content that prejudices a matter pending before a court or amounts to contempt of court under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971.
- Election-related content: content violating the Model Code of Conduct, Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (silence period restrictions), or that constitutes paid political propaganda not disclosed as such.
- Sovereignty & public order: content threatening the sovereignty, integrity, defence, or security of India, friendly relations with foreign states, or public order, or that incites violence — categories expressly restricted under Rule 3(1)(b) of the IT Rules, 2021.
- Obscene / sexual content: obscene, pornographic, or sexually explicit material, and any content depicting or sexualising minors, which is strictly prohibited and, where identified, will be reported to appropriate authorities under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 and the IT Act, 2000.
- Political propaganda & astroturfing: content designed to mislead rather than inform, or coordinated inauthentic submissions.
- Plagiarism & copyright infringement: content copied from other publications, photographers, or creators without permission or lawful attribution, in violation of the Copyright Act, 1957.
- Any other unlawful content: content otherwise prohibited under Indian law, including the Information Technology Act, 2000 and rules made thereunder.
4. Media & Evidence Guidelines
- Blur or otherwise obscure the faces of minors, victims of crime (especially sexual offences, consistent with legal restrictions on identifying such victims), and uninvolved bystanders.
- Remove visible phone numbers, ID numbers, vehicle registration numbers (unless directly relevant to a public-interest story such as a traffic offence), and personal addresses from images/videos before submission.
- Do not upload private, confidential, or unlawfully leaked documents; if you believe a document is genuinely in the public interest, describe its provenance to our editorial team before submission.
- Videos and photographs must be your own original recordings, or content you have a verifiable right to submit; clearly credit any third-party source.
- Any content generated or substantially altered using AI tools must be clearly disclosed as such at the time of submission.
5. Editorial Review & Verification
All submissions, including those from Paid Members, are reviewed before publication. We may verify facts, seek corroboration from named or official sources, request additional evidence, edit for clarity, length, and privacy/legal compliance, or decline to publish, without being obliged to give reasons. A submission — free or paid — does not guarantee publication, a publishing timeline, or a specific placement on the Platform.
6. Accuracy, Corrections & Right of Reply
We strive to verify content before publishing but cannot guarantee complete accuracy of citizen-submitted material or of third-party Source Content we aggregate. If you spot a factual error, or if you are the subject of a published story and wish to respond, contact us with details; we will review the matter and, where warranted, issue a correction, update, clarification, or a right-of-reply within a reasonable time, consistent with responsible journalistic norms recognised under the Press Council of India's Norms of Journalistic Conduct (which we voluntarily follow as good practice, though we are not a body registered with the Press Council).
7. Publishing & Editing Rights; Sponsored Content Disclosure
By submitting content, you grant Public of Uttarakhand a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, publish, edit, translate, and distribute your content, as further described in our Terms of Use. Publishing is entirely discretionary. We may edit submissions for clarity, length, privacy compliance, and legal accuracy without altering their essential meaning. Any sponsored, promotional, or paid-placement content on the Platform (as distinct from ordinary member news submissions) will be clearly labelled as "Advertisement," "Sponsored," or similar, consistent with the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) guidelines on disclosure of paid content.
8. Member Conduct, Strikes & Suspension
- Members submitting content that violates Clause 3 of this Policy will receive a written warning identifying the violation, unless the violation is severe (e.g., child sexual abuse material, doxxing, incitement to violence), in which case we may act immediately without prior warning.
- A pattern of policy violations (ordinarily three substantiated violations within a rolling twelve-month period) may result in suspension or permanent revocation of membership and submission privileges.
- Suspension or revocation of membership for a policy violation does not entitle a Paid Member to a refund of subscription fees already paid, as set out in our Terms of Use, Clause 7.
- Repeated or serious violations, including content that is unlawful under Indian criminal law, may be reported by us to the appropriate law-enforcement or regulatory authority.
9. Takedown, Grievance & Escalation
If you believe published content violates this Policy, infringes your intellectual property, defames you, or exposes your private information, you may submit a takedown request with full details (URL, nature of the violation, and your contact information) to the e-mail address in Clause 10. In line with Rule 3(2) of the IT Rules, 2021, we will acknowledge such complaints within 24 hours and endeavour to resolve them within 15 days (or 24 hours for complaints involving non-consensual intimate imagery or impersonation). If a complainant is not satisfied with our response, they may escalate the matter to our Grievance Officer named in the Terms of Use, or pursue remedies available under applicable law.
10. Contact & Grievances
For content-related concerns, corrections, right-of-reply requests, or takedown requests, contact us at support@publicofuttarakhand.org. We aim to acknowledge queries within 24 hours and respond substantively within 48 hours, subject to the statutory timelines in Clause 9.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Content Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law or editorial practice. The "Last updated" date above reflects the latest revision, and continued use of member submission tools after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.
