1.Introduction

This Privacy Policy describes how Akhil Bhartiya Sangeet Kala Mahavidhyalay (“ABSKM”, “we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses, stores, shares and protects personal data when you visit www.abskm.in, register for an examination, apply for academy affiliation, or otherwise interact with us.

This policy is issued in accordance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the Information Technology Act, 2000 together with the rules made thereunder, including the Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices and Procedures and Sensitive Personal Data or Information) Rules, 2011.

By using the Website or our services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy. It should be read together with our Terms & Conditions.

2.Who we are

ABSKM is an examination and certification board for the performing and fine arts, operating as a unit of Balaji Educational & Social Trust and registered with NITI Aayog, Government of India (Darpan ID: RJ/2022/0309701).

For the purposes of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, ABSKM acts as the Data Fiduciary in respect of the personal data described in this policy. Affiliated Academies collect and hold their own student data independently and are responsible for their own privacy practices.

3.Data we collect

3.1 Student data

• Full name, date of birth and gender
• Photograph, where required for identity verification or the certificate
• Parent’s or guardian’s name and contact details, where the student is a minor
• Contact details: address, email address and mobile number
• Academic details: academy or centre name, discipline, level, registration number
• Examination records: attendance, performance, marks, grades, results and certificates issued
• Audio or video recordings of practical examinations, where recorded for evaluation

3.2 Academy & applicant data

• Academy name, address, year of establishment and registration details
• Name, role, email address and mobile number of the applicant or authorised representative
• Faculty details and qualifications
• Student strength and disciplines taught
• Identity and address proof submitted with the affiliation application
• Bank and payment details relevant to fee remittance

3.3 Website & technical data

• IP address, browser type, device type and operating system
• Pages visited, time spent, referring URL and general usage patterns
• Cookie identifiers and similar technologies

3.4 What we do not collect

We do not knowingly collect caste, religion, political affiliation, biometric data, health records or financial account passwords. We ask that you do not submit such information to us. If you send it to us voluntarily, we may delete it.

4.How we collect it

We collect personal data:

• directly from you, when you complete a form on the Website, register for an examination, apply for affiliation, or contact us by email or phone;
• from your Academy, which registers students for examinations on their behalf;
• automatically, through cookies and server logs when you browse the Website;
• from examiners and evaluators, in the form of assessment records generated during an examination.

5.Why we use it

We use personal data only for the following specified purposes:

• to register students and process examination entries;
• to conduct, evaluate and moderate examinations;
• to prepare, issue and verify certificates and marksheets;
• to maintain a permanent academic record of levels attained;
• to process and administer academy affiliation applications and renewals;
• to collect fees and issue receipts and invoices;
• to communicate schedules, results, notices and administrative information;
• to organise convocation ceremonies;
• to respond to enquiries, requests and grievances;
• to detect and investigate malpractice and to protect the integrity of our examinations;
• to improve the Website and our services;
• to comply with applicable legal, regulatory and audit obligations.

We do not sell personal data to any third party, and we do not use student data for third-party advertising.

6.Legal basis & consent

We process personal data on the basis of your consent, given at the time of registration, application or form submission, and — where applicable — for legitimate uses permitted under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, including the performance of our obligations to you and compliance with law.

Consent is sought through a clear affirmative action, such as ticking a consent checkbox on a form. You may withdraw consent at any time as described in clause 15.

7.Children’s data

A significant proportion of our candidates are below eighteen (18) years of age. Where a student is a child:

• registration must be made with the verifiable consent of a parent or lawful guardian, ordinarily obtained through the Academy at the time of enrolment;
• we process only such data as is necessary for examination, evaluation and certification;
• we do not undertake tracking, behavioural monitoring or targeted advertising directed at children;
• we do not process a child’s data in any manner likely to cause a detrimental effect on their well-being.

A parent or guardian may contact the Grievance Officer at any time to access, correct or seek erasure of a child’s data.

8.Photography & recordings

Examinations may be recorded in audio or video form for evaluation, moderation and quality assurance. Such recordings are used only for those purposes, are accessible only to authorised personnel, and are retained in accordance with clause 12.

Photographs and video may also be taken at convocation ceremonies, workshops and events. ABSKM may use such images on its website, prospectus and social media to showcase student achievement. If you or your child appear in such material and you would prefer it not to be used, write to us at info@abskm.in and we will remove it from our own channels within a reasonable period.

9.Sharing & disclosure

We share personal data only where necessary, and only with:

• Affiliated Academies — the centre at which a student is enrolled receives registration confirmations, examination schedules and that student’s results;
• Examiners and evaluators — engaged by ABSKM and bound by confidentiality obligations;
• Service providers — website hosting, email, payment gateways, certificate printing and IT support, who process data on our instructions;
• Verification requests — where a school, employer or institution asks us to confirm the authenticity of a certificate, we confirm only the details appearing on that certificate;
• Legal and regulatory authorities — where disclosure is required by law, court order or a lawful request from a government agency;
• Professional advisers — auditors and legal advisers, under a duty of confidentiality.

We require all service providers to protect personal data and to use it only for the purpose for which it was shared.

10.Payment information

Payments are processed through third-party payment gateways. ABSKM does not collect or store complete card numbers, CVV codes, UPI PINs or net-banking credentials. Such information is handled directly by the payment gateway under its own privacy policy and applicable payment-industry security standards.

We retain only the transaction reference, amount, date and payment status necessary for accounting and reconciliation.

11.Cookies & analytics

The Website uses cookies — small text files stored on your device — to keep the site functioning correctly and to understand how it is used. We use:

• Essential cookies, required for navigation, session management and centre login;
• Preference cookies, which remember settings such as language;
• Analytics cookies, which help us understand aggregate usage patterns and improve the site.

Most browsers allow you to refuse or delete cookies through their settings. Disabling essential cookies may prevent parts of the Website, including centre login, from working properly.

12.Data retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or as required by law.

Where data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymised.

13.Data security

We maintain reasonable security safeguards appropriate to the nature of the data we hold, including access controls limiting data to authorised personnel, password-protected administrative and centre login areas, encrypted transmission (HTTPS) across the Website, secure hosting with regular backups, and confidentiality obligations on staff, examiners and service providers.

No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. While we take reasonable steps to protect your data, we cannot guarantee absolute security. In the event of a personal data breach, we will notify the Data Protection Board of India and affected individuals as required under applicable law.

14.Your rights

Subject to applicable law, you have the right to:

• Access — obtain confirmation of whether we hold your personal data, and a summary of that data and the purposes of processing;
• Correction — have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected or updated;
• Erasure — request deletion of data that is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, subject to our legal and record-keeping obligations;
• Grievance redressal — a readily available means of raising a complaint about our handling of your data;
• Nomination — nominate another person to exercise your rights in the event of death or incapacity.

To exercise any of these rights, write to the Grievance Officer at info@abskm.in from the email address registered with us. We may ask for information to verify your identity. We ordinarily respond within thirty (30) days.

Please note that examination results, marks, grades and certificate records form a permanent academic record and, in the interest of the integrity of the certification system, cannot be erased or altered on request except to correct a demonstrable error.

15.Withdrawing consent

You may withdraw your consent to processing at any time by writing to info@abskm.in. Withdrawal takes effect prospectively and does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

Where consent is withdrawn, we may be unable to continue providing services that depend on that data — for example, we may not be able to process an examination registration, declare a result, or issue a certificate.

16.Communications

We send administrative communications — examination schedules, admit information, results, fee notices and important announcements — to registered students, parents and academies. These are necessary to deliver our services and cannot be opted out of while a registration is active.

Promotional communications about new disciplines, events or programmes are sent only where you have consented, and every such message includes a means to opt out. You may also unsubscribe at any time by writing to info@abskm.in.

17.Transfers outside India

Personal data is ordinarily stored and processed in India. Some service providers — for example, email or cloud hosting services — may store data on servers located outside India. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure the data continues to receive an appropriate level of protection, and such transfers are made only to territories not restricted by the Central Government under applicable law.

18.Third-party links

The Website may link to third-party sites, including those of affiliated academies, payment gateways and social media platforms. This policy does not apply to those sites. We encourage you to read the privacy policy of any site you visit through a link from ours.

19.Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or in applicable law. The revised policy takes effect on publication on the Website, and the “Last updated” date above will change accordingly. Where changes are significant, we will make reasonable efforts to notify registered users and academies directly.

20.Grievance officer

If you have a question or complaint about how we handle personal data, please contact:

Complaints are acknowledged within seven (7) working days and ordinarily resolved within thirty (30) days. If you remain dissatisfied, you may escalate the matter to the Data Protection Board of India under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.