ITV

Category: I&B Ministry

  • I&B ministry imposes additional penalties for violation of programme code

    I&B ministry imposes additional penalties for violation of programme code

    Mumbai: The minister of information and broadcasting, Anurag Thakur has informed the Rajya Sabha that there have been 37 instances between March 2005 and June 2021 where broadcasters were prohibited the transmission and re-transmission of a channel for a specified time period, or permission to downlink the channel was cancelled, due to violation of the programme code.

    The information and broadcasting minister was asked to give the status of Cable TV Networks Amendment (Regulation) Bill, 2020 which proposed to increase the penalties for violation of the Programme Code. He was also asked whether the government had imposed a monetary penalty or prohibited the transmission of a channel under the relevant provisions of the Cable TV Networks Amendment (Regulation) Act for violation of the Programme Code.

    “No monetary penalty has been imposed for the violation of Programme Code,” noted Thakur.

    The programme code comes under the Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 contains broad guidelines related to content broadcast on private television channels.

    The matter of violation of the programme code and advertising code has been addressed by amending the rules vide government gazette notification number G.S.R. 416(E) on 17 June so as to include a complaint redressal mechanism by the broadcaster which prescribes the specific actions that can be taken by the central government for such violations.

    As per the amendments, if the government is satisfied that the programme of any channel is not in conformity with the programme code, it may, after giving an opportunity of hearing to the cable operator, and by an order in writing, prohibit the transmission or re-transmission of any such channel or programme in accordance with the provisions of section 20 of the Act.

    The rules provide for a three-tiered complaint redressal mechanism; Level I self-regulation by the broadcaster, level II self-regulation by self-regulating bodies of the broadcasters, and level III oversight mechanism by the central government.  

    The I&B minister had previously informed the Parliament on Friday that the government took action against 126 violations of the programme code between 2018 and 2021.

  • I&B Minister Anurag Thakur meets the NBA Board

    I&B Minister Anurag Thakur meets the NBA Board

    New Delhi : The newly appointed union minister for Information and Broadcasting  Anurag Thakur met the board members of the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) on Saturday to discuss various pertinent issues concerning news channels and the broadcast industry.

    Led by NBA president and chairman and editor-in-chief of India TV, Rajat Sharma, the delegation included ABP Network CEO  Avinash Pandey, Zee News, editor-in-chief and CEO, Sudhir Chaudhary, News24 chairperson and managing director Anuradha Prasad Shukla, India Today Group vice chairperson Kalli Purie, and NDTV editorial director Sonia Singh.

    The discussions delved into various issues including that of attaining a stable regulatory climate in the industry and other positive changes that can be introduced in the television ecosystem.

    Speaking about the meeting, spokesperson of NBA said, “Effective communication is extremely important for us to uplift the broadcast industry and implement positive changes. The discussion helped us provide direction to various issues within the industry. We are looking forward to working closely with the union minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur to take the broadcast industry to greater heights.”

    Further, NBA members discussed the industry landscape in the post-COVID scenario and apprised the minister about their concerns. The meeting also threw light on creating a strong policy roadmap for growth in the post-Covid era for the broadcast industry. 

  • I&B ministry acted against 126 violations of Programme Code in last 3 years

    I&B ministry acted against 126 violations of Programme Code in last 3 years

    Mumbai: During 2018 to 2021, the Government took action against 126 cases of violation of Programme Code laid down in the Cable Television Networks (CTN) Rules, 1994 framed under Cable Television Networks Act, 1995. The action with respect to cases was taken by issuance of advisories, warnings, apology scroll orders, and off-air orders, said the ministry on Friday.

    “Government has an institutional mechanism for taking action in respect of private TV channels which are found to violate the Programme Code. The I&B ministry also issues advisories from time to time to private satellite TV channels for adhering to the Programme Code,” said the minister of information and broadcasting, Anurag Thakur in the ongoing monsoon session of the Parliament.

    The minister was responding to a query put forth in the Lok Sabha on whether the Government has taken cognizance of high decibel, sensationalist and slanderous news programmes/debates being hosted on Indian news channels. The Government was asked whether it has received complaints against news channels for violating the broadcasting guidelines and broadcasting fake news, hate and divisive agenda during the last three years.

    The Government was also asked whether it is planning to initiate any code of conduct or broad guidelines for the debates that happen on electronic media and the time by which final decision is likely to be taken in this regard.

    The Programme Code contains broad guidelines related to content broadcast on private television channels.

    The guidelines also provide that no programme should contain anything obscene, defamatory, deliberate, false and suggestive innuendos, and half-truths, and should not criticise malign or slander any individual in person or certain groups, segments of social, public and moral life of the country.

    The Rules provide for a three-level complaint redressal mechanism; Level I by the broadcaster, Level II by the self-regulating bodies of the broadcasters; and Level III by oversight mechanism of the Central Government.

  • Licences of 204 private TV channels revoked in last four years : I&B minister

    Licences of 204 private TV channels revoked in last four years : I&B minister

    New Delhi: The ministry of information and broadcasting has revoked licences of over 200 private TV channels during 2016-2020, union I&B minister Anurag Thakur told the Parliament on Monday.

    Responding to a query in Rajya Sabha during the ongoing monsoon session, Thakur said that as on date, there are 916 private satellite TV channels which have been granted permission by the government under the Up-linking and Downlinking Guidelines, 2011.

    “However, many channels failed to fulfil the guidelines and ceased to operate in the last five years,” he said. “TV channels cease operation due to various reasons, including for non-fulfilment of conditions under the guidelines. During the last five years, 204 TV channels have ceased to operate.”

    Thakur also told the Parliament that the government also takes action against private TV channels for violation of programme code laid down under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 by issuance of warnings, advisories, off-air orders, etc. “The government has issued warnings in 128 cases for violation of guidelines,” he said.

    The minister said 60 private satellite TV channels were given permission to operate in the country in 2016-17, 34 in 2017-18, 56 each in 2018-19 and 2019-20, and 22 in 2020-21.

  • I&B ministry may adopt TV rating committee’s recommendations : Anurag Thakur

    I&B ministry may adopt TV rating committee’s recommendations : Anurag Thakur

    New Delhi:  The ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B) has analysed and evaluated the recommendations made by the committee led by Prasar Bharti chief executive officer Shashi Shekhar Vempati to review the current guidelines on TV rating agencies in India.

    The newly inducted I&B minister Anurag Thakur told the Lok Sabha on Friday, that the recommendations will be incorporated into the existing TV rating guidelines wherever required. “The recommendations have been analysed and evaluated vis-à-vis their being translated, if required, into the existing guidelines where-ever required,” said Thakur while responding to a question on the action-taken report of the said committee.

    The union minister said the existing guidelines have provisions like methodology for audience measurement, panel selection, viewing platform secrecy and privacy, data analysis, transparency etc. which are essential for a transparent and accountable rating system in India.

    The guidelines, inter-alia, prescribe that the panel homes shall be drawn from the pool of households selected through an establishment survey. The procedure adopted for selection and rotation of the panel homes shall be made transparent. Further, the panel size shall be increased in a graded manner and has to remain representative of all TV households in the country.

    The guidelines also prescribe that the rating agency shall publish the detailed methodology on its website. These parameters have been included in the existing guidelines to ensure transparency and representative collection of panel homes.

    “Based on the recommendations of the Committee headed by CEO, Prasar Bharati along with recommendations of TRAI, the present guidelines have been analysed / evaluated vis-à-vis strengthening of transparency / panel homes and other parameters,” the minister told the Parliament.

    The TV rating system in India came under scanner when in October 2020, the Mumbai police claimed in a press briefing that they had unearthed a case of manipulation of TRPs and found some incriminating evidence. The police said the accused were allegedly bribing households with BARC bar-o-meters installed to keep a particular channel running, leading to several arrests. In light of the controversy, BARC had temporarily suspended publishing of weekly data for news channels.

  • Parliament’s Monsoon Session to begin from today

    Parliament’s Monsoon Session to begin from today

    New Delhi: The monsoon session of the Parliament is all set to begin on Monday. The session will conclude on August 13. It will also be the first session for some of the newly inducted Cabinet ministers, including Anurag Thakur who was recently sworn in as the information and broadcasting minister.

    This will also be the first session of parliament since the results of assembly polls in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry. Last year, the monsoon session began in September and the winter session was not held due to the Covid-19 situation. According to the ministry of parliamentary affairs, during the 19 sittings of the session, 31 Government business items including 29 Bills and 2 financial items will be taken up. Six bills will be brought to replace the ordinances.

    Lok Sabha will meet from 11 am to 1 pm and from 2 pm to 6 pm unless directed otherwise by Speaker Om Birla. Four days have been allotted for the transaction of private members’ business, which is taken up in the post-lunch session.

    Parliamentary Affairs minister Shri Pralhad Joshi said that the Government is ready for discussion on any topic under the rules. Seeking full cooperation of all the parties in the smooth running of the houses, he said that there should be structured debate on the issues. An all-party meeting was held on Sunday to discuss the same.

  • Digital Media Ethics Code will make publishers accountable: I&B Jt Secy Vikram Sahay

    Digital Media Ethics Code will make publishers accountable: I&B Jt Secy Vikram Sahay

    New Delhi: As the government’s stand-off with a few social media companies continues over the new IT rules, ministry of information and broadcasting joint secretary Vikram Sahay said that Digital Media Ethics Code is aimed at addressing the grievances of the common man, and should be viewed as a ‘citizen-centric legislation’.

    “Digital Media Ethics Code is aimed at stopping transmission of content which is objectionable to women or harmful to children. Presence of a regulatory body can control and stop the spread of fake news as well as make the publishers accountable. It is essentially citizen-centric legislation,” he said on Tuesday.

    The MIB joint secretary was speaking at a webinar on ‘Digital Media Ethics Code’ organised by Press Information Bureau, Maharashtra and Goa for improving stakeholder understanding of Part III of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, that came into effect on 26 May.

    India is the world’s fastest growing OTT market and the market is expected to reach $2.9 billion by 2024 which is an annual growth of 28.6 per cent. Sahay said the new rules become all the more important, amid this recent explosion of digital content. “The purpose of the Digital Media Ethics Code is to stop transmission of content which is objectionable to women or harmful to children,” he added.

    Elaborating on how the online news portals are the major source of news among Indians under 35 years of age and that there is a 41 per cent increase in time spent on such news apps, Sahay said, “When there are content regulators like Press Council of India for newspapers and Cable TV Network Act, 1995 for News on TV there has been no such regulation for news on digital platforms. Similar is the case for OTTs which do not have a regulation unlike that of Cinema Halls or Television.”

    The new rules notified on 25 February, came into effect on 26 May recommend a three-tier mechanism for the regulation of all online media. According to the new IT Rules, social media and streaming companies will be required to take down contentious content quicker, appoint grievance redressal officers and assist in investigations. The rules also seek to regulate the functioning of online media portals and publishers, over-the-top (OTT) platforms and social media intermediaries.

    “There will be an inter-departmental committee to deal with unresolved complaints by news publishers or regulatory bodies and for that it is imperative that disclosure of information in public domain regarding grievance redressal by publisher and self-regulating body is done,” said the joint secretary.

    Sahay also added that the I & B ministry will collect basic information about people working on news portals or OTT platforms, in a prescribed format by the stakeholders. “More than 1800 of people working on news portals or OTT platforms have already submitted their details to the ministry, where most of them have submitted voluntarily,” he added.

    Digital news publishers, representatives of film industry, Over the Top (OTT) platforms and online content producers attended the webinar, along with academicians, researchers, students and officers of state government of Maharashtra and Goa.

  • New IT rules will empower and protect social media users: Ashwini Vaishnaw

    New IT rules will empower and protect social media users: Ashwini Vaishnaw

    New Delhi: The new IT rules will empower and protect users and ensure a safer social media ecosystem, said the union IT and communications minister Ashwini Vaishnaw who recently took charge of the ministry post the cabinet reshuffle.

    “Reviewed the implementation and compliance of Information Technology Rules, 2021 along with my colleague Rajeev Chandrasekhar ji. These guidelines are empowering and protecting users and will ensure a safer and responsible social media ecosystem in India,” Vaishnaw said in a post shared on Koo, which is considered a competitor to Twitter in India.

    Vaishnaw’s statement comes amid a continued standoff between the government and some social media platforms over the new rules. Twitter, which had been in the eye of the storm over its alleged failure to comply with the new IT rules in India, on Sunday named Vinay Prakash as its resident grievance officer for India, according to the company’s website.

    The new rules notified on 25 February, came into effect on 26 May recommend a three-tier mechanism for the regulation of all online media portals and publishers, over-the-top (OTT) platforms, and social media intermediaries. Under the new rules, each significant social media company with over 50 lakh users is required to appoint a chief compliance officer, a nodal contact person for 24×7 coordination with law enforcement agencies, and a resident grievance officer. All three should be resident Indians and their details be put on the company’s website.

  • I&B ministry registers BCCC as Level II self-regulatory body under amended Cable TV rules

    I&B ministry registers BCCC as Level II self-regulatory body under amended Cable TV rules

    New Delhi: The ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B) has registered the Broadcasting Content Complaints Council (BCCC) as a self-regulatory body for redressal of grievances against the non-news television channels under the Cable TV Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2021 notified recently.

    Founded in June 2011 by the Indian Broadcasting Federation (IBF), BCCC is an independent self-regulatory body for non-news general entertainment channels that examines content-related grievances against over 300 non-news channels in the country.

    “The BCCC shall perform all functions specified for a self-regulatory body in Rule 18 of the Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2021,” the ministry said. While Justice (retd) AP Shah was the BCCC’s founding chairperson, Justice (retd) Gita Mittal is the present chairperson of the Council.

    “It is a pleasant recognition of ten years of very hard work done by the BCCC under its various learned chairpersons,” BCCC’s general secretary Ashish Sinha told PTI.

    Under the amended Cable TV network rules notified by the government in May, self-regulatory bodies of TV channels are required to be registered with the central government.

    The amended rules stipulate a three-layer grievance redressal mechanism — self-regulation by broadcasters, self-regulation by the self-regulating bodies of broadcasters, and an oversight mechanism by the central government. The rules require each broadcaster to establish a grievance or complaint redressal mechanism, appoint an officer to deal with the complaints, display the contact details of their grievance officer on their website or interface and be a member of a self-regulating body.

    As per the rules, any person aggrieved by the content of a programme of a channel may file his/her complaint in writing to the broadcaster first. “The broadcaster shall, within 24 hours of a complaint being filed, generate and issue an acknowledgment to the complainant for his information and record. The broadcaster shall dispose of the complaint and inform the complainant of its decision within 15 days of receipt of such complaint,” the rules state.

  • Centre moves SC seeking transfer of pleas challenging IT rules

    Centre moves SC seeking transfer of pleas challenging IT rules

    New Delhi: The Centre on Tuesday approached Supreme Court seeking transfer of all pending pleas challenging its new IT rules to the apex court.

    Numerous petitions challenging the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, are currently pending in various high courts across the country. The new rules notified on 25 February, came into effect on 26 May recommend a three-tier mechanism for the regulation of all online media.

    While the government has maintained that the new rules were introduced to make social media platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and Instagram more accountable and responsible for the content hosted on their platform, many have challenged the new rules over issues of privacy. Several petitions are pending in several courts, including the Delhi high court.

    In June, Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) , composed of digital arms of 13 leading media companies of the country had moved high court against the rules, which it said ” violate the fundamental right of equality (Article 14) and freedom of speech and expression (Article 19(1)(a)”.

    The Foundation of Independent Journalism (the non-profit company that publishes The Wire) and legal website, LiveLaw has also filed petitions against the new rules

    Meanwhile, Delhi high court has directed Twitter to inform it by 8 July as to when it will appoint a resident grievance officer in compliance with the new IT Rules after the microblogging platform informed court that it was in the process of doing so.

    The government had earlier announced that if significant social media intermediaries, those with more than 50 lakh registered users failed to comply with the new requirements by 25 May, they will lose their intermediary status. On Monday, the Centre, had filed an affidavit in the high court, stating that any non-compliance amounts to breach of provisions of IT Rules, leading to Twitter losing its immunity conferred under the IT Act.

    Under the new rules, the digital publishers are required to take urgent steps for appointing a grievance officer, if not done, and place all relevant details in the public domain. “They also need to constitute self-regulatory bodies through mutual consultation so that the grievances are addressed at the level of publishers or the self-regulating bodies themselves,” according to the ministry.