ITV

Tag: Home Ministry

  • Home ministry working on ‘cyber crime prevention’ project

    NEW DELHI: The Parliament was told today that the home ministry is executing a project on Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC), which will also act as specialised central institutional mechanism for online cyber crime reporting platform particularly cyber crime against women and children.

    Minister of state for electronics and information technology P P Chaudhary said that no study had been done the point made by the questioner about rampant misuse of social media by paedophiles and sex offenders to intimidate and harass women and children.

    However, the minister said the data maintained by National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) showed a total of 749 and 792 cases were registered under publishing or transmitting of material containing sexually explicit act, etc. in electronic form (section 67 & 67A IT of Act) and a total of 5 and 8 cases were registered under publishing or transmitting of material depicting children in sexually explicit act, etc. in electronic form (section 67B IT of Act) during 2014-2015.

    In addition, a total of 40 cases in 2014 and 94 cases in 2015 were registered under Sections 14 & 15 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.

    He said cyber world is anonymous and universally available. Most of the child pornographic websites are hosted from outside India. INTERPOL maintains and updates list of “worst of list” on extreme child sexual abuse.

    The Government periodically blocks this list shared by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as the national crime bureau of INTERPOL. More than 3000 such websites/URLs have been blocked so far.

    Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 has provisions for removal of objectionable online content. The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2011 notified under section 79 of the IT Act require that the Intermediaries shall observe due diligence while discharging their duties and shall inform the users of computer resources not to host, display, upload, modify, publish, transmit, update or share any information that is harmful, objectionable, affect minors and unlawful in any way.

    The Government is in regular touch with intermediaries including various social media websites to effectively address the blocking/removal of objectionable content. Further, Social Networking sites hosted anywhere in the world are monitored by the law enforcement agencies in order to check / remove objectionable contents from the web sites in accordance with the provisions of IT Act, 2000.

  • Report illegal TV channels, Govt alerted

    NEW DELHI: While stressing that the law was clear that no cable operator could beam any private TV channel which had not been registered with the Government, the minister of state for information and broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said today that a total of 889 private satellite channels had been given valid permission under Uplinking/ Downlinking Guidelines as on 31 January 2017.

    Rathore told the Parliament that Sub Rule 6(6) of the Cable Television Network Rules 1994 specifies that no cable operator shall carry or include in his cable service any television broadcast or channel which has not been registered by the Central Government for being viewed within the territory of India.

    The Ministry has from time to time issued advisories to State Governments to constitute State and District Level Monitoring Committees for broadcast content monitoring.

    The Ministry on 8 July 2016 issued an advisory to the Chief Secretaries of all States/UTs Governments, the District Collectors and the Multi System Operators (MSOs)/ Local Cable Operators (LCOs) to ensure that no unpermitted TV channel, are transmitted/ re-transmitted in the Cable Networks and to take action against the defaulter under the provisions of the Cable Television Networks Act 1995 to stop transmission of these channels.

    In pursuance to this, necessary action had been taken by authorized officers and FIR lodged against the concerned LCO. 

    In mid-2016, the Ministry had also written to the Home Ministry to bring to its notice any illegal channels being beamed in the country.

    However, the I and B Ministry had last month put on its website a list of 899 as at the end of 2016, with nine new television channels cleared in December 2016.

    According to that list, permission had been initially granted to 1054 channels but later the licences of 155 channels had been cancelled. The 899 channels included 500 general entertainment channels and 399 news and current affairs channels.

    Of these, while 788 were allowed to uplink and downlink in India, 20 were permitted to uplink from India but not downlink in the country and 91 channels uplinked from overseas were permitted downlinking into India.

    Also Read:

    Peace TV Saga: 24 TV channels identified unfit for telecast in 2015 by India

    HC terms Care World TV ‘ban’ as illegal

  • MSOs finally cross 1000 as pan-India DAS deadline nears

    MSOs finally cross 1000 as pan-India DAS deadline nears

    NEW DELHI: With less than three months to go for the deadline of the final phase which will complete cable digitlization all over the country, the total number of multi-system operators has finally crossed 1000 with 774 getting provisional licences till 30 September 2016.

    The deadline is 31 December 2016.

    The number of permanent licences (up to 10 years) remains at 229 and the total therefore is 1003 MSOs.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry today released the list of 29 MSOs whose licences have been cancelled and cases closed. In addition, there are four cases in which some high courts have stayed the cancellation orders in petitions filed by these MSOs.

    Until 2 June this year, the number of cases closed was 27, and so the number has gone up by another two. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences not completing certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    Four MSOs earlier in the cancellation list have been restored licences. They include Silverline Entertainment, Eminent Cable Networks, and Skynet Digital Services which got security clearance from the Home Ministry and Tanuku Communication Network of Andhra Pradesh which has got provisional licence.

    According to the latest list up to 30 September 2016, the areas of operation of four MSOs have been revised after 30 September 2016 (three in the permanent list and one in the provisional list).

    Of the new licencees, three – Radient Digitek Network Pvt. Ltd of Rajasthan, Dabang Duniya Publication Pvt. Ltd of Madhya Pradesh, and Alfa Cable of Mumbai – have got pan-India licences, though Radient is minus Rajasthan.

    The other new registrations after June 2016 include the states of, or specific districts in, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chhatisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh Maharashtra, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Telengana, Jammu and Kashmir, and Meghalaya.

    With the home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.

    In the last meeting of the DAS Task Force, MIB joint secretary had said that there were six thousand MSOs in the country but only a handful of them had come forward to register.

  • MSOs finally cross 1000 as pan-India DAS deadline nears

    MSOs finally cross 1000 as pan-India DAS deadline nears

    NEW DELHI: With less than three months to go for the deadline of the final phase which will complete cable digitlization all over the country, the total number of multi-system operators has finally crossed 1000 with 774 getting provisional licences till 30 September 2016.

    The deadline is 31 December 2016.

    The number of permanent licences (up to 10 years) remains at 229 and the total therefore is 1003 MSOs.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry today released the list of 29 MSOs whose licences have been cancelled and cases closed. In addition, there are four cases in which some high courts have stayed the cancellation orders in petitions filed by these MSOs.

    Until 2 June this year, the number of cases closed was 27, and so the number has gone up by another two. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences not completing certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    Four MSOs earlier in the cancellation list have been restored licences. They include Silverline Entertainment, Eminent Cable Networks, and Skynet Digital Services which got security clearance from the Home Ministry and Tanuku Communication Network of Andhra Pradesh which has got provisional licence.

    According to the latest list up to 30 September 2016, the areas of operation of four MSOs have been revised after 30 September 2016 (three in the permanent list and one in the provisional list).

    Of the new licencees, three – Radient Digitek Network Pvt. Ltd of Rajasthan, Dabang Duniya Publication Pvt. Ltd of Madhya Pradesh, and Alfa Cable of Mumbai – have got pan-India licences, though Radient is minus Rajasthan.

    The other new registrations after June 2016 include the states of, or specific districts in, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chhatisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh Maharashtra, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Telengana, Jammu and Kashmir, and Meghalaya.

    With the home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.

    In the last meeting of the DAS Task Force, MIB joint secretary had said that there were six thousand MSOs in the country but only a handful of them had come forward to register.

  • DAS effect: MIB registered MSOs’ list nears 1,000

    DAS effect: MIB registered MSOs’ list nears 1,000

    NEW DELHI: Although the government is adamant about extending the deadline of the final phase of digital addressable system, the couutry which claims to have more than 60,000 cable operators is finally nearing a total of 1000 multi-system operators who provide signals to them.

    The total of MSOs went up to 966 by 28 July 2016, with 26 MSOs gettomg the green signal as provisional licencees after 28 June 2016. The number of permanent licencees (up to ten years) remains at 229.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry had cancelled the licences of 27 MSOs and closed their cases by 2 June 2016. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the Home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences for failing to complete certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    According to the latest list upto 28 July 2016, the area of operation of three MSOs including one permanent licensee have been revised after 28 June, one of which – Radiant Digitek Network Pvt. Ltd of Kota – which already had a permanent licence for has now got licence to operate pan-India on a provisional licence. .

    The other new registrations include the states of, or specific districts in, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.

    With the Home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.

  • DAS effect: MIB registered MSOs’ list nears 1,000

    DAS effect: MIB registered MSOs’ list nears 1,000

    NEW DELHI: Although the government is adamant about extending the deadline of the final phase of digital addressable system, the couutry which claims to have more than 60,000 cable operators is finally nearing a total of 1000 multi-system operators who provide signals to them.

    The total of MSOs went up to 966 by 28 July 2016, with 26 MSOs gettomg the green signal as provisional licencees after 28 June 2016. The number of permanent licencees (up to ten years) remains at 229.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry had cancelled the licences of 27 MSOs and closed their cases by 2 June 2016. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the Home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences for failing to complete certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    According to the latest list upto 28 July 2016, the area of operation of three MSOs including one permanent licensee have been revised after 28 June, one of which – Radiant Digitek Network Pvt. Ltd of Kota – which already had a permanent licence for has now got licence to operate pan-India on a provisional licence. .

    The other new registrations include the states of, or specific districts in, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.

    With the Home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.

  • Indian govt warns against re-transmission of Peace TV illegally

    Indian govt warns against re-transmission of Peace TV illegally

    NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Even as reports came that the Government is initiating a probe into how Peace TV is being beamed into the country, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) issued an advisory today asking all MSOs, cable operators  and DTH platforms against transmitting any un-authorized TV channels on their networks.

    Drawing attention to reports of “security threats due to TV content aimed at inciting communal and terrorist violence”, the government advisory said, “Reports are being received of such content being broadcast through private satellite TV channels, such as Peace TV channel, which are not permitted by this Ministry for downlinking into the country. It is, therefore, essential that broadcast or transmission of such non-permitted channels is stopped immediately by the cable operators and DTH operators.”

    Peace TV, twice denied landing rights in India earlier, airs sermons of Mumbai-based tele-evangelist Dr. Zakir Naik.

    The government warned that necessary action would be taken for any violations against defaulters.

    A Press Trust of India (PTI) report, separately, quoted home minister Rajnath Singh as saying that reports regarding Mumbai-based Zakir Naik, his sermons on Peace TV and the Islamic institution run by him have been taken note of and action will be taken as per law.

    Meanwhile, MIB sources said that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Intelligence Bureau would be asked to probe how the channel is beaming into the country.

    The sources, who said that the channel had been denied permission twice to beam into India, added that the MIB would take the help of the External Affairs Ministry to approach the countries in west Asia from where the channel was being beamed.

    The government advisory to Indian media pointed out that non-permitted TV channels are in violation of the sub-rule 6(6) of the Cable TV Rules under programme code and “need to acted upon immediately”.

    Section 5 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995, amended in 1997,  states no person shall transmit or re-transmit through a cable service any programme unless such programme is in conformity with the programme code. In the Cable Television Network (CTN) Rules 1994, framed under the Cable TV Act, the nature of the contents prohibited to be transmitted or re-transmitted are given in the in the programme code under Rule 6 of these Rules.

    Sub Rule 6(6) of the Cable TV Rules specifies that no cable operator shall carry or include in his cable service any television broadcast or channel, which has not been registered by the Central Government for being viewed within the territory of India.

    The advisory said that a list of the private satellite TV channels permitted by the government was available on the website of MIB at www.mib.nic.in.

    Transmission or re-transmission of any TV channel in violation of the Section 5 of the Cable TV Act, read with Rule 6(6), by any cable operator is an offence which attracts action against the operators by authorized officers.

    The Central government advisory has been sent to various State governments too.

    Naik and his Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) came into limelight after a Bangladeshi newspaper, quoting local government officials, alleged that his sermons influenced the people who killed 20 people, comprising mostly foreigners, in Dhaka few days before Eid.

    According to Peace TV’s website, peacetv.in, on which its schedule is available, the channel is beamed off at least a dozen satellite transponders to reach viewers  in more than 200 countries.

    Its English HD feed is available off AsiaSat7 at 105.5 degrees East and off Arabsat BADR 4 at 26.0 degrees East. AsiaSat 7’s C-band transponders have coverage over South East Asia, West Asia, Asia and Australasia, while Arabsat BADR 4 allows it to reach out in Africa, West Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and parts of Europe.

    The channel also has an India region targeted specific transponder on Intelsat12 at 45 degrees east. Indian government officials think that some cable operators and MSOs, probably, are latching on to this beam and (illegally) retransmitting Peace TV following requests from subscribers.

  • Indian govt warns against re-transmission of Peace TV illegally

    Indian govt warns against re-transmission of Peace TV illegally

    NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Even as reports came that the Government is initiating a probe into how Peace TV is being beamed into the country, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) issued an advisory today asking all MSOs, cable operators  and DTH platforms against transmitting any un-authorized TV channels on their networks.

    Drawing attention to reports of “security threats due to TV content aimed at inciting communal and terrorist violence”, the government advisory said, “Reports are being received of such content being broadcast through private satellite TV channels, such as Peace TV channel, which are not permitted by this Ministry for downlinking into the country. It is, therefore, essential that broadcast or transmission of such non-permitted channels is stopped immediately by the cable operators and DTH operators.”

    Peace TV, twice denied landing rights in India earlier, airs sermons of Mumbai-based tele-evangelist Dr. Zakir Naik.

    The government warned that necessary action would be taken for any violations against defaulters.

    A Press Trust of India (PTI) report, separately, quoted home minister Rajnath Singh as saying that reports regarding Mumbai-based Zakir Naik, his sermons on Peace TV and the Islamic institution run by him have been taken note of and action will be taken as per law.

    Meanwhile, MIB sources said that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Intelligence Bureau would be asked to probe how the channel is beaming into the country.

    The sources, who said that the channel had been denied permission twice to beam into India, added that the MIB would take the help of the External Affairs Ministry to approach the countries in west Asia from where the channel was being beamed.

    The government advisory to Indian media pointed out that non-permitted TV channels are in violation of the sub-rule 6(6) of the Cable TV Rules under programme code and “need to acted upon immediately”.

    Section 5 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995, amended in 1997,  states no person shall transmit or re-transmit through a cable service any programme unless such programme is in conformity with the programme code. In the Cable Television Network (CTN) Rules 1994, framed under the Cable TV Act, the nature of the contents prohibited to be transmitted or re-transmitted are given in the in the programme code under Rule 6 of these Rules.

    Sub Rule 6(6) of the Cable TV Rules specifies that no cable operator shall carry or include in his cable service any television broadcast or channel, which has not been registered by the Central Government for being viewed within the territory of India.

    The advisory said that a list of the private satellite TV channels permitted by the government was available on the website of MIB at www.mib.nic.in.

    Transmission or re-transmission of any TV channel in violation of the Section 5 of the Cable TV Act, read with Rule 6(6), by any cable operator is an offence which attracts action against the operators by authorized officers.

    The Central government advisory has been sent to various State governments too.

    Naik and his Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) came into limelight after a Bangladeshi newspaper, quoting local government officials, alleged that his sermons influenced the people who killed 20 people, comprising mostly foreigners, in Dhaka few days before Eid.

    According to Peace TV’s website, peacetv.in, on which its schedule is available, the channel is beamed off at least a dozen satellite transponders to reach viewers  in more than 200 countries.

    Its English HD feed is available off AsiaSat7 at 105.5 degrees East and off Arabsat BADR 4 at 26.0 degrees East. AsiaSat 7’s C-band transponders have coverage over South East Asia, West Asia, Asia and Australasia, while Arabsat BADR 4 allows it to reach out in Africa, West Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and parts of Europe.

    The channel also has an India region targeted specific transponder on Intelsat12 at 45 degrees east. Indian government officials think that some cable operators and MSOs, probably, are latching on to this beam and (illegally) retransmitting Peace TV following requests from subscribers.

  • MSO number touches 940 with forty more getting clearance in June 2016

    MSO number touches 940 with forty more getting clearance in June 2016

    NEW DELHI: As the country marches towards the deadline of the final phase which will complete cable digitlization all over the country, as many as forty multi-system operators have received provisional licences in June and taken the total to 711.

    Early this month, the government announced the cancellation of the permanent licence of one more MSO and the number of permanent licencees (up to ten years) fell by one to 229.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry had cancelled the licences of 27 MSOs and closed their cases by 2 June. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the Home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences not completing certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    According to the latest list upto 28 June 2016, the area of operation of four MSOs have been revised after 2 June, one of which – Thamizhaga Cable TV Communication Pvt. Ltd, Chennai – has now got licence to operate pan-India barring the metros of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. Chennai is in any case under stay following a court order after the first phase.

    Of the new licencees, three – Fastway Media Cable Network Pvt. Ltd of Delhi, Metro Trade Links of Bhopal, and Megbela Infitel Cable & Broadband Private Limited from New Delhi have got pan India licences.

    The other new registrations include the states of, or specific districts in, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chhatisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh.

    With the Home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.

  • MSO number touches 940 with forty more getting clearance in June 2016

    MSO number touches 940 with forty more getting clearance in June 2016

    NEW DELHI: As the country marches towards the deadline of the final phase which will complete cable digitlization all over the country, as many as forty multi-system operators have received provisional licences in June and taken the total to 711.

    Early this month, the government announced the cancellation of the permanent licence of one more MSO and the number of permanent licencees (up to ten years) fell by one to 229.

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry had cancelled the licences of 27 MSOs and closed their cases by 2 June. In most of the other cases in the list of cancelled registrations, it is because of failure to get security clearance from the Home ministry. However, there are cases of many MSOs holding provisional licences not completing certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

    According to the latest list upto 28 June 2016, the area of operation of four MSOs have been revised after 2 June, one of which – Thamizhaga Cable TV Communication Pvt. Ltd, Chennai – has now got licence to operate pan-India barring the metros of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. Chennai is in any case under stay following a court order after the first phase.

    Of the new licencees, three – Fastway Media Cable Network Pvt. Ltd of Delhi, Metro Trade Links of Bhopal, and Megbela Infitel Cable & Broadband Private Limited from New Delhi have got pan India licences.

    The other new registrations include the states of, or specific districts in, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chhatisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh.

    With the Home ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August 2014, but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the cancelled list – presumably because the cases are still pending.