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Tag: Lok Sabha

  • Rajya Sabha clears sweeping ban on online money gaming despite opposition uproar

    Rajya Sabha clears sweeping ban on online money gaming despite opposition uproar

    NEW DELHI: The Indian parliament on Friday pushed through a controversial law banning the operation, facilitation and advertising of online money games, amid noisy opposition protests over the lack of debate.

    The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025—passed by voice vote in the Rajya Sabha a day after clearing the Lok Sabha—makes online money gaming punishable with up to three years in prison and fines of as much as Rs 1 crore. Offences will be cognisable and non-bailable.

    Tabling the bill, electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw likened money-gaming addiction to drug abuse and accused powerful vested interests of fuelling terror finance through gaming platforms. He said roughly 45 crore Indians had lost money online, with annual losses pegged at Rs 20,000 crore.

    The legislation bans all forms of online betting and gambling—from fantasy sports and poker to rummy, lotteries and other card games—and bars banks and payment providers from processing related transactions. 

    Advertising such services will invite up to two years’ jail and fines of Rs 50 lakh, while facilitating payments could mean three years in prison and Rs 1 crore in penalties. Repeat offenders face enhanced sentences of up to five years and Rs 2 crore in fines.

    Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge hit out at the government for forcing the bill through without discussion, even as union minister Kiren Rijiju said protests made a debate impossible.

    Vaishnaw stressed the bill distinguishes between harmful money games and esports. Speaking to ANI, he said the government aims to “promote and encourage the good parts” of online gaming, and to make India a hub for development through the planned Indian Institute of Creative Technologies.

    Prime minister Narendra Modi, addressing an NDA meeting, hailed the online gaming ban as a reform with “far-reaching impact”, while accusing the opposition of reducing the monsoon session to disruption.

    NDTV reported that the government will also act against “big people” attempting to sway opinion through media and social media campaigns against the ban.

  • India draws battle lines between esports and online gambling

    India draws battle lines between esports and online gambling

    MUMBAI: India’s Lok Sabha has passed the Promotion & Regulation of Online Gaming Bill 2025, creating a stark divide between legitimate esports, casual gaming  and what lawmakers term predatory gambling platforms. The legislation, which now heads to the Rajya Sabha, has split the gaming industry down the middle.

    Real-money gaming firms are crying foul, claiming the bill sounds their death knell. But esports pioneers are celebrating what they see as long-overdue recognition. Rajen Navani, chairman and managing director of JetLine group, says the cabinet’s approval “is a decisive step that separates esports and social video gaming from wagering-led real money gaming.”

     Minister of railways, information & broadcasting and electronics & information technology Ashwini Vaishnaw,  pulled no punches when tabling the bill. “Online money gaming firms are opaque in nature,” he told parliament. “There are multiple hazards linked to online money gaming. This also impacts national security such as money laundering and terror funding.”

    The minister drew a clear distinction between educational esports and what he characterised as destructive gambling platforms. “The government wants to support esports and casual games. We want to protect the interest of society,” Vaishnaw said, urging unanimous passage.

    The legislation establishes a central regulatory authority with Rs 50 crore in initial capital expenditure and Rs 20 crore in annual recurring costs. The watchdog will oversee compliance, shape policy and encourage innovation in legitimate gaming.

    Crucially, the bill formally recognises esports as competitive sport, promising government backing for training academies, research centres and technology platforms. Social and educational games will receive similar support, with built-in safeguards ensuring age-appropriate content.

    For Navani, who pioneered esports in India, the clarity provides “a strong tailwind” that should boost investment in tournaments, infrastructure and jobs. 

    Real-money gaming operators, however, face an uncertain future as regulators prepare to separate wheat from chaff in India’s booming digital gaming market.

  • News18’s Mega Opinion Poll results to be unveiled at 6 PM on March 13

    News18’s Mega Opinion Poll results to be unveiled at 6 PM on March 13

    Mumbai:  News18 Network is set to unveil the results of its Mega Opinion Poll, featuring an extensive survey covering 518 Lok Sabha constituencies across 21 major states.

    The poll, airing on 13  March and 14 March, features a massive sample size of over 1,18,616 respondents, representing 95 per cent of Lok Sabha constituencies and making it one of the largest surveys in the country.

    The survey, which goes live at 6 pm on 13 March, will provide valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections.

    The poll findings will also be projected as a vote and seat share for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections with individual projections for all major states and for regions within states.

    Utilizing a structured questionnaire translated into 11 regional languages, the survey employed personal face-to-face interviews conducted at homes selected via random sampling. Each Lok Sabha constituency was meticulously covered, with 3 Assembly constituencies and 5 polling booths selected in each, ensuring a representative and unbiased sampling process.

    Fieldwork for the survey was carried out by trained investigators from ten different fieldwork agencies, with strict quality control measures in place. Before going into the field, the teams underwent detailed briefing sessions to ensure adherence to the sampling plan and questionnaire. Senior field managers and executives conducted on-the-spot quality checks, and each interview was geo-tagged to verify its authenticity.

    The results of the News18 Mega Opinion Poll will be covered extensively across all 20 News18 network channels including News18 India, CNN-News18 and News18 regional channels in 16 languages. The results will also feature on News18’s 16 websites in various languages, ensuring wide-reaching and inclusive coverage of the landmark survey.

    The News18 Mega Opinion Poll was conducted by News18 Poll Hub. Detailed responses and methodology of the survey will be made available on News18.com, providing transparency and accountability to the process.

    For more information, please visit News18.com or tune in to the special programming, starting at 6 pm on 13 March and 14 March across all News18 channels.

  • Telecommunications Bill 2023 to be tabled in Lok Sabha today

    Telecommunications Bill 2023 to be tabled in Lok Sabha today

    Mumbai: The Telecommunications Bill 2023 will be tabled in Lok Sabha on 18 December i.e today.

    The draft Telecommunications Bill released in 2023 had proposed to bring over-the-top or internet-based calling and messaging apps under the definition of telecommunications to enhance users’ safety.

    The bill had also proposed to curb the power of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), on which industry players had raised concerns.

    According to media reports, the definition of telecommunications services reportedly does not include OTT and this is believed to come as a relief for WhatsApp and Telegram as these communication service providers will be out of the scope of telecom regulations.

  • Prasar Bharati’s DD Network sees a decline in its gross unique viewership

    Prasar Bharati’s DD Network sees a decline in its gross unique viewership

    Mumbai: Prasar Bharati has overall maintained the same position in their genres vis-a-vis private channels in the last three years, as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) ratings. As per BARC data for the subscribed DD channel, the gross unique viewership across the network for the past three years has declined and for the current year (till the second week of July i.e. upto week 28) has reached 633 million. The I&B minister Anurag Thakur informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

    Public sector broadcaster Prasar Bharati’s Doordarshan (DD) Network’s gross unique viewership in 2021 was at 684 million as compared to 2020, which was at 747 million views. A total of 760 million views were registered in 2019, as per the BARC’s TV viewership data. This viewership data is also for DD News and DD India till 2 October 2020 and between December 2021 & March 2022.

    Currently, the government is taking corrective measures to increase the viewership of DD channels. It is focusing on improving the quality of programmes and providing relevant content to the viewers.

    In response to a question on whether the government is improving the quality of programmes telecast on the Doordarshan and facing competition from the private TV channels, the minister said, “Prasar Bharati is the public broadcaster and its primary duty is to carry out public broadcasting services to inform, educate and entertain the public and to ensure a balanced development of broadcasting on radio and television. Its purpose is not solely commercial but to reach those areas where no private broadcaster would venture.”

    The minister added, “Doordarshan is committed to quality content and has accordingly taken several steps to produce and acquire high-quality programmes for its network.”

    He mentioned that Doordarshan has also launched the ‘Content Sourcing Portal’ for submission of suo-moto proposals under the Direct Assignment Process (DAP) by production houses. Doordarshan Kendras across the country are upgraded with the introduction of the latest equipment video walls for quality production. The quality of program production, post-production and broadcast has improved with modernization and upgradation.

    Mentioning the Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND) scheme, Thakur said that the public broadcaster was allocated a total of Rs 593 crore under the scheme out of which the total expenditure was Rs 653 crore. The fund was used for the modernisation and augmentation of the capital infrastructure of Doordarshan and for improving the quality of transmission & programmes.

    In the financial year 2021-22, Prasar Bharati was allocated a fund of Rs 175 crore out of which the expenditure was Rs 162 crore. A total of Rs 183 crore was allocated in the financial year 2020-21 and the expenditure was Rs 202 crore. However, the allocated fund was Rs 234 crore in the financial year 2019-20 with an expenditure of Rs 289 crore.

  • If Lok Sabha polls are held now, Modi led NDA will witness landslide victory: India TV opinion polls

    If Lok Sabha polls are held now, Modi led NDA will witness landslide victory: India TV opinion polls

    New Delhi: India TV has predicted that if Lok Sabha elections are held now, prime minister Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) can register a landslide victory on 362 Lok sabha seats out of a total of 543. The prediction is made following a nationwide opinion poll by India TV-Matrize News Communication.

    The results of the survey titled ‘Desh Ki Awaaz’ (Voice of the Nation) were telecast on India’s No. 1 news channel India TV on July 29 at 4 p.m.

    According to the survey, Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) is projected to win only 97 lok sabha seats if general elections are held now, with ‘Others’ including small, regional parties and independents projected to win 84 seats.

    The survey says, NDA is projected to get 41 per cent votes, UPA may get 28 per cent and others 31 per cent votes, if elections are held now.

    Asked about their first choice for Prime Minister, 48 per cent said they would want to see Narendra Modi again as PM. Modi was followed by Rahul Gandhi with 11 percent, Mamata Banerjee 8 percent,  Sonia Gandhi 7 percent,  Mayawati 6 percent, Sharad Pawar 6 percent, and Arvind Kejriwal 5 percent, Nitish Kumar 4 percent, K Chandrashekhar Rao 3 pcercent and Priyanka Vadra with 2 percent.

    Asked who is the strongest political opponent of Modi, 23 percent respondents favoured Rahul Gandhi, while 19 percent opted for Arvind Kejriwal. 11 per cent favoured Mamata Banerjee, and 8 per cent  each opted for Nitish Kumar and Sonia Gandhi.

    The India TV-Matrize Opinion Poll ‘Desh Ki Awaaz’ was conducted from 11-24 July, in 136 out of 543 parliamentary constituencies of India with a sample size of 34,000 respondents, among whom 19,830 were males and 14,170 were females.

    The state-wise break-up given in the survey makes interesting reading.

    In the most populous state Uttar Pradesh, NDA may win a whopping 76 out of 80 Lok sabha seats, with UPA and others projected to win only two seats each. In Bihar, NDA may win 35 out of a total of 40 seats, and the UPA may win five seats.

    In Maharashtra, NDA may win 37 out of a total 48 lok sabha seats, while non-BJP opposition may win the remaining 11 seats.

    The ruling DMK-led UPA in Tamil Nadu is projected to win 38 out of a total of 39 seats, leaving the lone remaining seat to NDA. In LDF-ruled Kerala, the non-BJP opposition can sweep all the 20 Lok sabha seats in the state.

    In TMC-ruled West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress is projected to win 26 out of a total of 42 seats, with NDA projected to win 14 and UPA two.

    According to state-wise break up given by the survey agency, Gujarat has total 26 seats out of which NDA can get 26 and UPA 0. While in Maharashtra, there are total 48 seats, out of which NDA can get 37 and UPA 11.

    Goa has total 2 and both will be named to NDA. Rajasthan has total 25 and NDA will get all 25. Madhya Pradesh has total 29, NDA can get 28 and UPA may get 1.  Chhattisgarh has total 11 out of which NDA may get 10 and UPA 1.

    Below is the seat wise prediction for all the states.

    West Bengal: Total 42, NDA 14, UPA 2, Others (TMC) 26.

    Bihar: Total 40, NDA 35, UPA 5.

    Jharkhand: Total 14, NDA 13, UPA 1.

    Odisha:Total 21, NDA 11, UPA 2, Others (includes BJD) 8.

    Himachal Pradesh: Total 4. NDA 4.

    Punjab: Total 13, NDA 3, UPA 3, Others (includes AAP) 7.

    Haryana: Total 10, NDA 9, UPA 1.

    Jammu & Kashmir, Laddakh: Total 6, NDA 3, UPA 0, Others 3.

    Delhi: Total 7, NDA 7, UPA 0, Others 0.

    Uttar Pradesh: Total 80, NDA 76, UPA 2, Others 2.

    Uttarakhand: Total 5, NDA 5, UPA 0.

    Telangana: Total 17, NDA 6, UPA 2, Others (includes TRS) 9.

    Andhra: Total 25, NDA 0, UPA 0, Others (includes YSRCongress) 25.

    Karnataka: Total 28, NDA 23, UPA 4 Others 1.

    Tamil Nadu: Total 39, NDA 1, UPA(includes DMK) 38, Others 0.

    Kerala: Total 20, NDA 0, UPA 20, Others 0.

    Tripura: Total 2, NDA 2, UPA 0.

    Assam: Total 14, NDA 11, UPA 1, Others 2.

    NE states: Total 9, NDA 7, UPA 1, Others 1.

    Rest UTs:Total 6, NDA 4, UPA 2, Others 0.

  • MIB takes action on 163 violation cases of Programme Code against private channels in last 3 years

    MIB takes action on 163 violation cases of Programme Code against private channels in last 3 years

    Mumbai: The ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) has taken action in 163 cases in the last three years and the current year against private TV channels found in violation with the Programme Code. The ministry took action through the issuance of advisories, warnings, apology scroll orders, and off-air orders.

    MIB had issued an advisory on 23 April to all private satellite TV channels to ensure strict compliance with the Programme Code under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and rules framed thereunder.

    As per the advisory, the ministry observed that the reporting of the Ukraine-Russia conflict and the recent demolition incident in North-West Delhi were “misleading, sensationalist and have communal overtones.”

    Also Read: MIB condemns reporting of Russia-Ukraine conflict and Delhi demolition in advisory

    During the monsoon session of Parliament, the Lok Sabha asked the MIB whether it had taken action against TV channels which aired television debates allowing participants to air communally provocative and derogatory remarks. It also asked the government what action it has taken to prevent news channels from airing such debates on communal issues in the future.

    All programmes telecast on private satellite TV channels are required to adhere to the Programme Code laid down in the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994, framed under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1994. The Programme Code, inter alia, provides that no programme should be telecast that contains attacks on religions or communities, or visuals or words contemptuous of religious groups, or that promotes communal attitudes.

    The Programme Code under the Cable Television Networks Rules, inter alia, contains broad guidelines relating to content broadcast on private television channels. The central government has amended the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 to provide for a statutory mechanism for redressal of grievances and complaints of violations of the Programme Code and Advertising Codes of the broadcast by television channels.

    The Rules provide for three levels of complaint redressal mechanisms: Level I by the broadcaster; Level II by the self-regulating bodies of the broadcasters; and Level III by the oversight mechanism of the central government.

  • Govt allocates DD Kisan Rs 12.05 crore for FY’22: I&B minister Anurag Thakur

    Govt allocates DD Kisan Rs 12.05 crore for FY’22: I&B minister Anurag Thakur

    Mumbai: The Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Anurag Singh Thakur on Tuesday said that the government has allocated a total of Rs 12.05 crore to DD Kisan in financial year 2022-23, which is being utilised for farmers’ education.

    While answering a question asked by a politician and Lok Sabha member from Gujarat during the parliament session, the minister highlighted different initiatives the government is taking to educate farmers and build their capacity by imparting new knowledge.

    The I&B minister noted that Prasar Bharti’s 24×7 satellite TV channel “DD Kisan” is exclusively dedicated to the farmers and the agriculture sector. “The objective of this channel is to serve and educate farmers and build their capacity to use new technologies in their activities and extend its reach to the remotest parts of the country,” he added.

    “The programmes of “DD Kisan” are designed to inform and educate the rural populace and work towards creating a holistic environment for sustainable and inclusive growth,” he added.

    The minister further explained that Krishi Darshan, the field-based stories on technologies in agriculture, major events and success stories, is telecast five days a week and Gaon Kisan, field-based stories on animal husbandry and agripreneurs, is telecast five days a week.

    The programme Krishi Darshan is being telecast on 20 DD Channels in 12 languages, including Hindi. Prasar Bharati also has a dedicated YouTube channel for DD Kisan where the viewers may access this channel and also its various programmes digitally across the globe.

    Further, All India Radio broadcasts a 30-minute, six days a week, dedicated interactive programme, Kisanvani, in respective regional languages, over 96 AIR stations across the country and Kisan Ki Baat programme over FM Gold Channel in Delhi, for the farming community in collaboration with the ministry of agriculture & farmers’ welfare, the government of India, he also added.

    Thakur also mentioned the government’s effort to analyse the utilisation of dedicated channels for farmers.

    He further replied, “the impact of the DD Kisan Channel is regularly monitored through feedback from the farmers during field-based and interactive recording, and from toll-free lines provided for farmers.”

    “The regular analysis and impact of the channel are also done by the scientists and experts from ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research), IARI (Indian Agricultural Research Institute) and KVKs (Krishi Vigyan Kendras), etc.,” he added further.

  • MIB prohibited transmission of 15 TV channels since 2019: Anurag Thakur

    MIB prohibited transmission of 15 TV channels since 2019: Anurag Thakur

    Mumbai: The ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) has prohibited the transmission of 15 channels for violations under the uplinking/downlinking and of the programme code since 2019, minister of information and broadcasting Anurag Thakur informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

    Thakur also said that the ministry has issued directions for blocking 56 YouTube-based news channels and their social media accounts for public access during 2021-22 under Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics) Rules 2021.

    Between 2014-2021, the ministry of electronics and information technology also exercised its powers under Section 69 A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 to block 25,369 URLs, consisting of web pages, websites, pages on social media accounts etc.

    The Lok Sabha questioned the minister whether the government is authorised to impose broadcast bans on TV channels and if it has outlined any policy for the same. It also asked if the government has put a redressal mechanism in place to hear the grievances of the channels.

    The minister informed the Lok Sabha that all private satellite TV channels are granted permission by the ministry under the uplinking and downlinking guidelines, 2011 and are required to adhere to the terms and conditions of such permission including adherence to the programme code and advertisement code and other provisions laid down under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995.

    He further noted that the grant of permission to a satellite TV channel under the guidelines is subject to security clearance by the ministry of home affairs as per the procedure laid down by it.

    To address the grievances of TV channels, the government follows the due process of law and laid down the process before taking a decision to suspend/prohibit a channel. “Grievances related to the uplinking/downlinking guidelines are addressed by the ministry,” said Thakur.

    The Lok Sabha also asked if the government had conveyed a detailed explanation of why MediaOne was not allowed to continue their broadcasting to the channel management. To which the I&B minister replied, “The government has followed due process of law and the laid down procedure before taking a decision regarding the cancellation of permission to TV news channel ‘Media One’. The matter is sub-judice before the Supreme Court.”

    He further informed the Lok Sabha that details of channels whose permission has been cancelled for violation of the uplinking and downlinking guidelines are available on the I&B ministry’s Broadcast Seva portal.

  • Sansad TV’s YouTube channel restored after alleged hacking attempt

    Sansad TV’s YouTube channel restored after alleged hacking attempt

    Mumbai: The YouTube channel of Sansad TV ran into trouble on Tuesday after its telecast was suspended due to an alleged hacking attempt. According to the statement issued by Sansad TV, the YouTube channel got compromised due to ‘unauthorised activities by some scamsters’ on 15 February at 1 am, which also affected its live-streaming.

    Viewers who tried to watch the streaming were greeted with a disclaimer from YouTube stating, “This account has been terminated for violating YouTube’s community guidelines”.

    However, the channel was restored later in the evening. “Sansad TV’s YouTube channel has been restored. You can get back to all your favourite programmes on the channel,” it announced on Twitter.

     

     

    According to a statement issued by Sansad TV earlier in the day, the channel name was also changed to ‘Ethereum’ by the attacker. “SansadTV’s social media team promptly worked on it and got the channel restored by early morning around 3:45 hrs,” it stated.

    Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in), the nodal agency for responding to cyber-security incidents in India had also reported the incident and alerted Sansad TV. Later on YouTube also started fixing the security threats permanently, the channel stated.

     

     

    The channel was launched by prime minister Narendra Modi in September last year after merging Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV, and shows the live streaming of the Parliament sessions.