Accordingly, a company would have to send a notice informing shareholders about “the availability of participation through video conference, and provide necessary information to enable shareholders to access the available facility of videoconferencing”, the Corporate Affairs Ministry said.

The Ministry added that the Chairman and Secretary would have to safeguard the integrity of the meeting via videoconferencing, ensure proper videoconference facilities, prepare the minutes of the meeting, ensure that no one other than the concerned shareholder or proxy to the shareholder is attending the meeting through electronic mode.

Further, it said that if a statement of a participant in the meeting via videoconferencing is interrupted or garbled, “the Chairman of the meeting or Secretary shall request for a repeat or reiteration, and if need be, the Chairman or Secretary shall repeat what he heard the participant was saying for confirmation or correction”.