ITV

Tag: Information & Broadcasting

  • MIB extends draft broadcast bill consultation date to 15 October

    MIB extends draft broadcast bill consultation date to 15 October

    Mumbai: The ministry of information & broadcasting (MIB) has announced late last night on X (twitter) that the last date for receiving comments/recommendations/suggestions on the much-talked-about draft broadcasting bill has been extended to 15 October 2024. It also attached the draft Broadcasting Services (Regulations) Bill, 2023 which it had released on 10 November 2023 with the tweet, and not the “2024 draft version” which has been doing the rounds of several publications.

    It had been alleged by several media outlets that the bill in its 2024 draft version would curb the relative freedom that news channels, influencers, online websites, and OTT platforms currently enjoy by asking them to set up content evaluation committees.  

    Earlier yesterday, certain news publications had reported that the ministry had told organisations to return their copies of the “2024 draft version” to it.  The MIB it is reported was holding consultations with select stakeholders on this version.

    Even as the date has been extended, it was not clear at the time of writing whether the 2024 draft version was being scrapped in its entirety or only parts of it would be.

    In its tweet, the MIB cryptically said that a fresh draft would be published after detailed consultations. 

  • Government to once again make MHA clearance compulsory for MSOs?

    Government to once again make MHA clearance compulsory for MSOs?

    MUMBAI: Are there more regulatory controls coming on the cable TV industry? If reports emerging in the media (The Asian Age) are to be believed, then they probably are. According to the newspaper, every multisystem operator (MSO) which is licensed with the ministry of information & broadcasting (MIB), will now have to also seek the ministry of home affairs’ security (MHA’s) clearance. A notification to this effect is being planned and passed by the Narendra Modi government.

     Hitherto, broadcasters and satellite service providers had to go through this procedure. MSOs could just get a licence from the post office to operate in the country, following which they had to get a digital licence from the MIB. The security clearance from the MHA requirement was discontinued a couple of years ago to speed up the  pace of cable TV digitalisation.

     The newspaper says the government was forced to take such a step for MSOs as well because the MIB had received complaints that several cable TV operators are continuing to retransmit channels which showed content that was potentially harmful to the nation’s security and was deemed as objectionable.

     The government is seeking to make it compulsory for MSOs to get annually vetted by the central intelligence and government security agencies to prevent this from occurring.

     No confirmation, from the MIB or government sources, was available at the time of writing this report.

  • Make Film Museum interactive to ensure involvement of visitors, says Arora

    Make Film Museum interactive to ensure involvement of visitors, says Arora

    New Delhi: Information & Broadcasting Secretary Sunil Arora has said every effort is being made to make the second phase of the Film Musuem in Mumbai interactive, giving visitors a very unique viewing experience.

    He said, the museum should highlight the cultural and social impact of cinema on people.

    The remarks came during a review meeting of the National Museum of Indian Cinema at the Films Division in Mumbai on 22 March.

    The focus was on Phase II of the museum that will be housed in a state-of-the-art new building being specially built for the purpose. The progress of civil construction was reviewed and museum plans were discussed.

    The museum, spread over five levels, would showcase various facets of Indian cinema from its early years to present period. It will also have interactive exhibitions on all verticals of film making covering cinematography, editing, sound, script writing, screenplay among others.

    There will also be special sections on regional cinema, Hindi cinema, documentaries and Indian film music.

    The new bulding housed in the Films Division complex on Pedder Road in South Mumbai, will also have two mid-size auditoriums, viewing galleries, cafeteria among others. The building is being built by the public sector National Building Construction Company. The National Council of Science Museums, Kolkata under the Culture Ministry has been tasked with setting up of the museum.

  • Make Film Museum interactive to ensure involvement of visitors, says Arora

    Make Film Museum interactive to ensure involvement of visitors, says Arora

    New Delhi: Information & Broadcasting Secretary Sunil Arora has said every effort is being made to make the second phase of the Film Musuem in Mumbai interactive, giving visitors a very unique viewing experience.

    He said, the museum should highlight the cultural and social impact of cinema on people.

    The remarks came during a review meeting of the National Museum of Indian Cinema at the Films Division in Mumbai on 22 March.

    The focus was on Phase II of the museum that will be housed in a state-of-the-art new building being specially built for the purpose. The progress of civil construction was reviewed and museum plans were discussed.

    The museum, spread over five levels, would showcase various facets of Indian cinema from its early years to present period. It will also have interactive exhibitions on all verticals of film making covering cinematography, editing, sound, script writing, screenplay among others.

    There will also be special sections on regional cinema, Hindi cinema, documentaries and Indian film music.

    The new bulding housed in the Films Division complex on Pedder Road in South Mumbai, will also have two mid-size auditoriums, viewing galleries, cafeteria among others. The building is being built by the public sector National Building Construction Company. The National Council of Science Museums, Kolkata under the Culture Ministry has been tasked with setting up of the museum.

  • Arora urges FTII to strengthen its activities, attends P K Nair condolence meet

    Arora urges FTII to strengthen its activities, attends P K Nair condolence meet

    New Delhi, 6 March: Information & Broadcasting Secretary Sunil Arora said today that the Film and Television Institute of India should strengthen its activities and improve on its functioning to become an Institute of Excellence in the country.

    Arora, who was in Pune to attend the concluding function of the National Film Archives of India Workshop on Film Preservation and Restoration, also planted a sapling at the Kothrud site of FTII wherein 32 new staff quarters are being constructed. He also visited the legendary Prabhat Studios at the Law College campus of FTII. He met the dean (Films) Kedar Awasthi, Dean (Television) and the faculty members as well as the staff.

    Director Prashant Pathrabe and Awati shared with him the details of the activities conducted by the Institute in the past four months.

    In the morning, he attended the condolence meeting at NFAI arranged on the demise of film archivist and former NFAI Director P.K.Nair who passed away two days ago.

    Arora said “P K Nair’s contribution was big in setting up the film archive. I hope his work would inspire and help build up larger momentum in the film archiving and preservation movement of the country.”   He said there was no greater tribute to Nair than to hold this workshop and carry on diligently with preservation/restoration work.

    Around sixty persons were present at the meeting including NFAI director Prakash Magdum, filmmaker Amol Palekar and former director Suresh Chabria. Ashay Film Club on behalf of FFSI hoped a scholarship in the name of Nair would be instituted.

     

  • Arora urges FTII to strengthen its activities, attends P K Nair condolence meet

    Arora urges FTII to strengthen its activities, attends P K Nair condolence meet

    New Delhi, 6 March: Information & Broadcasting Secretary Sunil Arora said today that the Film and Television Institute of India should strengthen its activities and improve on its functioning to become an Institute of Excellence in the country.

    Arora, who was in Pune to attend the concluding function of the National Film Archives of India Workshop on Film Preservation and Restoration, also planted a sapling at the Kothrud site of FTII wherein 32 new staff quarters are being constructed. He also visited the legendary Prabhat Studios at the Law College campus of FTII. He met the dean (Films) Kedar Awasthi, Dean (Television) and the faculty members as well as the staff.

    Director Prashant Pathrabe and Awati shared with him the details of the activities conducted by the Institute in the past four months.

    In the morning, he attended the condolence meeting at NFAI arranged on the demise of film archivist and former NFAI Director P.K.Nair who passed away two days ago.

    Arora said “P K Nair’s contribution was big in setting up the film archive. I hope his work would inspire and help build up larger momentum in the film archiving and preservation movement of the country.”   He said there was no greater tribute to Nair than to hold this workshop and carry on diligently with preservation/restoration work.

    Around sixty persons were present at the meeting including NFAI director Prakash Magdum, filmmaker Amol Palekar and former director Suresh Chabria. Ashay Film Club on behalf of FFSI hoped a scholarship in the name of Nair would be instituted.

     

  • Sikkim joins three others states excluded from DAS Phase III

    Sikkim joins three others states excluded from DAS Phase III

    NEW DELHI: The extension of Digital Addressable System (DAS) by three different High Courts affecting four states does not augur well for the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, which may see a catapulting of such cases as reports pour of just over 50 per cent of seeding of set top boxes (STBs).
     
    After the extension of deadline in both Telengana and Andhra Pradesh, the Sikkim High Court has ordered a stay on analogue cable television signals switch-off until 28 March. A stay had been ordered after the first phase by the Madras High Court for Tamil Nadu, which also remains in force, though the Madhya Pradesh High Court has rejected a petition by Om Systems of Indore challenging Section 4A of Cable Television Networks Regulation Act 1995.
     
    Phase III stipulated for analogue signals to be switched off in all urban areas of the country by 31 December, 2015.
     
    Justice Meenakshi Madan Rai of the Sikkim High Court said in her order on a petition by All Sikkim Cable Operators Association that subscribers will be affected for no fault of theirs. The petition was filed through Association president Roshan Rai.
    In the arguments, it was contended that multi-system and local cable operators had to bear a high cost of migrating to a digital addressable service (DAS) and there were no investors; the difficult terrain of the state was not conducive to laying of optical fibre Cables (OFC) required for Digital networks; Set-Top-Boxes were not easily available in the country; and time limits for migration to digital regime are almost impractical.
    The court also noted that the Association had written to Information and Broadcasting Ministry Secretary Sunil Arora on 26 November, 2015 apprising him of the constraints faced by the MSOs and LCOs and requesting for an extension of the deadline but the Ministry did not care to reply.
    The Court turned down a plea by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to be impleaded. 
    The directive by the Hyderabad High Court was notable in that Justice Vilas V Afzalpurkar went against an order given by a division bench of which he was a member in the same court relating to Phase III on 20 August, 2013.
  • Third Indian Panorama Film Festival to kick off in Shillong

    Third Indian Panorama Film Festival to kick off in Shillong

    NEW DELHI: A festival of selected films from the Indian Panorama is being held in Shillong in Meghalaya from 12 March. 

     

    To be inaugurated by Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma in the presence of Information & Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka at the U Soso Tham Auditorium, it will present a bouquet of the best of contemporary Indian cinema produced in different languages with a view to promoting quality cinema from different parts of the country.

     

    Eight feature films and three non-feature films will be screened over three days. The film festival is being organised by the Directorate of Film Festivals in collaboration with the state government.

     

    The festival will open with the Marathi feature film, Dr. Prakash Baba Amte – The Real Hero directed by Samruoddhi Porey. 

    Other feature films to be screened during the festival are Drishyam (Malayalam), December 1 (Kannada), Kuttram Kadithal (Tamil), Ankhon Dekhi (Hindi), Othello (Assamese), Ri (Khasi), Teenkahon (Bengali) and Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona (Bengali). Non-feature films to be screened during the festival are Songs of the Blue Hills by Utpal Borpujari (Nagamese/English), A Dream Never Dies (Assamese) and Ek Hota Kau (Marathi). 

    Indian Panorama Film Festival is being held in Shillong for the last two years and this will be the third edition of the festival.

  • DD to mark 50 years of the 1965 Indo-Pak war

    DD to mark 50 years of the 1965 Indo-Pak war

    NEW DELHI: Famed singers Suresh Wadekar and Kavita Krishnamurthy today emphasised that artistes from Bollywood always came forward for a good cause without charging any fee, but someone else had to take the initiative for such events.

     

    Answering questions at a press meet to announce the ‘Smarananjali’ musical programme being held on 30 October to mark 50 years of the 1965 war with Pakistan and pay tribute to those who laid down their lives in the defence of the country, both artistes denied that Bollywood artistes were reluctant in participating in such programmes.

     

    Smarananjali is the concept of Doordarshan additional director general Mahesh Joshi, who had commenced such programmes when he was in the Bangalore Kendra of Doordarshan and now initiated the same in Delhi.

     

    To be organised by Delhi Kendra of Doordarshan, the programme will also feature violin maestro Dr L Subramaniam who was present at the press meet along with the other artistes. It will also have performances by Pankaj Udhas, artistes from the Subramaniam Foundation. The musical tribute will be interlaced with specially choreographed dance performances of memorable patriotic songs by Manjula Parmesh and group. An additional attraction is the on-the-spot painting by renowned painter B S Verma and a dance by soldiers from the Madras Engineering Group (MEG) who will perform to the song “Ma Tujhe Salaam”.

     

    Dr Mukesh Chandra, who is a special police officer for Delhi Traffic Police said he is an amateur flutist and will also perform at the event.

     

    Prasar Bharati senior advisor Brig. VAM Hussain said it was necessary for the common man to realise the hardships that the armed forces faced. He said the attempt would be to make this programme an annual affair.

     

    This programme will be telecast later on DD National and is also aimed at helping the brave soldiers and their families and keep the deeds and bravery of valiant soldiers in public memory.   

     

    ‘Smarananjali’ is being planned in the form of a lyrical tribute by artistes on stage to martyrs in the presence of their families and the Defence Minister Arun Jaitley, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar, and the Chiefs of Army, Navy and Air force and Chiefs of Paramilitary forces. Religious leaders from different religious groups will also be present to pay homage to the martyrs.

     

    The selected special guests will pay homage to the martyrs by lighting a candle before a replica of the Amar Jawan Jyoti and a soldier.

     

    Three Param Vir Chakra Awardees will also be honoured at the tribute event. They are Hony Capt Bana Singh (Retd), 8 J&K LI, Sub Yogender Singh Yadav, 18 Grenadiers and N/SUB Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK RIF.

     

    The Defence Ministry has appreciated the concept of the programme and is fully supporting Doordarshan’s efforts to organise the event.

     

  • Supriya Sahu gets three-month extension as JS in I&B

    Supriya Sahu gets three-month extension as JS in I&B

    NEW DELHI: Senior Indian Administrative Officer, Supriya Sahu, has been given a three-month extension as joint secretary in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

     

    Her term ends later this month. The extension has been approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

     

    Ministry sources told indiantelevision.com that the necessary proposal for extension beyond 22 July had been moved prior to the election of the new government.  The normal term of an IAS officer is five years, said the sources.

     

    A 1991 Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer, Sahu is presently joint secretary (Broadcasting) in the Ministry.

     

    Prior to this, she was broadcasting director at MIB and was directly involved with the drawing up of the Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill and the Content Code for TV channels.

     

    As JS, she has been involved with digitisation of cable television as well as the dynamic growth of both FM and community radio.