Acceptable Use Policy

Namma Ward™ works because neighbours can talk to each other usefully. This policy sets out what belongs here, what does not, and what we do when the rules are broken. It applies to everything you submit — posts, comments, grievances, events, announcements, Lost & Found notices, suggested corrections, profile details and messages.

Effective 5 August 2026 · Version 2026-08-05

Pending legal review. This document describes how NammaWard actually handles data today. It has not yet been reviewed by a qualified legal practitioner and should be verified against the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the IT Rules before being relied upon as a binding notice.

The spirit of it

Write as though you are speaking to a neighbour in person: be factual, be civil, and keep it relevant to the locality. Disagreement is welcome; contempt is not.

What belongs here

Civic issues, local developments and neighbourhood news.
Questions and practical information about services and facilities.
Community events, programmes, meetings and initiatives.
Constructive discussion about matters affecting your ward.
Genuine Lost & Found notices for your area.
Corrections to information you know to be out of date or wrong.

What is not allowed

Unlawful and harmful content

Anything unlawful, or that promotes or facilitates unlawful activity.
Threats, incitement to violence, intimidation or content that endangers anyone's safety.
Hate speech or content attacking people on the basis of religion, caste, gender, sexual orientation, disability, language, ethnicity or place of origin.
Content that is obscene, sexually explicit, or that sexualises or endangers a child.
Content that threatens public order, communal harmony or the sovereignty and integrity of India.

Harm to other people

Harassment, bullying, stalking, or targeting an individual with repeated unwanted attention.
Publishing another person's private information— phone number, address, ID numbers, photographs of them or their home, vehicle numbers, workplace details — without their consent. Post your own contact details, never someone else's.
Defamatory allegations presented as fact.
Photographs or videos of identifiable people taken where they would reasonably expect privacy.

Dishonesty

Impersonating another person, an official, an organisation, or Namma Ward™ staff.
Knowingly false or misleading information, including fabricated civic alerts.
Manipulating the platform — duplicate accounts, vote or engagement manipulation, or gaming moderation.
Filing grievances or Lost & Found notices you know to be fictitious.

Commercial and political misuse

Spam, unsolicited advertising, promotional bulk posting, affiliate links, or pyramid and investment schemes.
Election campaigning, canvassing for votes or party political propaganda. Factual information about representatives and their work is welcome; electioneering is not.

Technical abuse

Malware, phishing or anything designed to compromise users or the platform.
Automated scraping, bulk harvesting of user or contact information, or bypassing rate limits and access controls.
Probing, scanning or attempting to breach the platform's security.

Content you do not own

Only post material you created or have the right to share. Do not post copyrighted text, photographs or video without permission. When you share information from a news outlet or government source, attribute it and link to the original rather than reproducing it wholesale.

Moderation and enforcement

Community submissions are reviewed before publication where applicable. Depending on the seriousness and history, we may:

decline a submission, or ask you to edit and resubmit it;
remove content that is already published;
issue a warning;
restrict your ability to post;
suspend or terminate your account;
report the matter to the appropriate authority where the law requires it or where someone's safety is at risk.

We aim to act proportionately and to prefer editing or a warning over removal where that is reasonable. Content that endangers someone is removed immediately.

Reporting something

Every published post can be reported from the post itself. For anything else — including content that endangers someone, or a request to remove your personal information — see Grievance Redressal or write to contact@nammaward.in. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, contact the emergency services first.

If you disagree with a decision

If your content was removed or your account restricted and you believe it was wrong, reply to the notice you received or write to us. We will review it and explain the outcome.

This policy forms part of the Terms of Use. How we handle the personal data in your submissions is described in the Privacy Policy.