Tag: Meenakshi Lekhi

  • ABP is digital media partner of Professional Golf Tour of India

    ABP is digital media partner of Professional Golf Tour of India

    Mumbai: ABP Network has announced its collaboration with Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) as the digital media partner for its golf tournaments to be held in 2021. With this move, ABP claims to have become the first Hindi news network to cover a golf tour in the country and broadcast it live on its digital platform – ABP Live and other social media platforms.   

    The partnership was launched in October with the coverage of the first leg of the 5 City, Tata Steel PGTI, MP Cup 2021 held in Delhi. Inaugurating the event, MOS for external affairs and culture Meenakshi Lekhi said, “Golf is perceived to be a sport of the elite, but it is played by people from all sections of society. It also provides economic support for many. It is great that ABP is streaming the tournament live and popularising the sport with the masses.” She presented the award and a cash prize of Rs 11, 31,550 to Viraj Madappa – winner of the Delhi leg.

    Live broadcast of the next leg of the tour that was held in Jaipur garnered more than two million views on ABP Live during the four-day coverage. The remaining three legs of the tournament to be held in Chandigarh (13 and 14 November), Kolkata (27 and 28 November) and Jamshedpur (18 and 19 December) will witness over 300 professional golf players, including Olympians and past winners for a chance to lift the Rs 1.5 crore title. 

    Commenting on the partnership with PGTI, ABP Network CEO Avinash Pandey remarked, “While Golf is rising as a sport in India, we at ABP believe that it should be made accessible to the masses of the country. ABP, with its widespread reach and popularity, strives to make this possible.”

    “Over the last few years, we have been aggressively looking towards ramping up our offerings in the sports segment like Kabbadi and Olympics, while not remaining restricted to cricket. This initiative of broadcasting golf is in line with the larger goal. It’s a prestigious moment for the network to associate with PGTI and facilitate a pan-Indian viewership for the tournament,” he added.

    PGTI is the internationally recognised controlling body for professional golf in India which is included in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) system. 

  • Parliament panel issues summons to Google, Paytm on data privacy

    Parliament panel issues summons to Google, Paytm on data privacy

    MUMBAI: Google and Paytm have been directed to appear before a joint parliamentary committee on 29 October on the issue of data protection and privacy. Social media platforms Facebook and Twitter have also been called in to provide oral evidence. Meanwhile, e-commerce giant Amazon has refused to appear in front of the panel.

    BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi, who heads the committee, stated, “Amazon has refused to appear before the joint committee of Parliament on the Data Protection Bill on 28 October and this amounts to breach of privilege."

    The panel has decided to send a privilege notice if representatives of Amazon do not turn up. “Coercive action can be suggested to the government against the e-commerce company,” she added.

    The summons to Facebook and Twitter is strictly pertaining to the issue of citizen’s personal data protection. The notice to Twitter assumes significance as these come close on the Centre’s letter to the microblogging site’s chief Jack Dorsey.

    Taking strong exception to the misrepresentation of India’s map, the government wrote a stern letter to the Twitter CEO, saying that any attempt by the platform to disrespect the sovereignty and integrity of India, which is also reflected by the maps, was totally unacceptable.

    On the other hand, social media giant Facebook has been interrogated by the parliament panel about the quantum of their revenue, profit and tax payouts in India and asked what portion of their earnings were being used for data security in the country.

    Commenting on the questions raised by the panel, Facebook spokesperson said, “We deeply appreciate the opportunity to discuss data regulation issues with the hon’ble members of Joint Committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill. We believe that India’s data protection law has the potential to propel the country’s digital economy and global digital trade, and we wholeheartedly support this effort.”

    Facebook India’s policy head Ankhi Das was examined for two hours by the panel members of the joint committee and has been asked tough and searching questions from across the political spectrum.

    During the meeting, a member suggested that the social media platform should not draw inferences from the data of its users for commercial benefits of its advertisers or for electoral purposes.

    Last month, amid severe criticism over the alleged collusion of Facebook India executive Ankhi Das and the BJP, minister of Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote a hard-hitting letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, blaming the social media network’s India management of alleged bias against people supporting the right-of-center ideology.

    The Personal Data Protection Bill proposes to put restriction on use of personal data without explicit consent of citizens. The draft bill, approved by Cabinet in December 2019, proposes a penalty of up to Rs 15 crore and up to three-years in jail for company executives for violating privacy norms.

    The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in February and has been referred to a joint parliamentary committee for examination and report.

  • Parle MTV Junkyard cries out a new slogan ‘Dunk That Junk’

    Parle MTV Junkyard cries out a new slogan ‘Dunk That Junk’

    MUMBAI: Swachch Bharat is a dream that can only be fulfilled through consistent messaging that runs through several touch points. Hence, Parle MTV Junkyard Project is using the very symbol of dumping ground to communicate the message of do not litter. Soon, the dump trucks across Mumbai and Delhi will be sporting a colourful graffiti look with a strong messaging of Dunk That Junk. How does this help? Littering is a bad habit that needs to be stopped through constant reminders. The colourful dump trucks will be a persistent reminder of the plethora of undesignated dumping grounds across cities. Besides strong communication on air and interactive push on social media, the graffiti dump trucks will be a bold and unexpected messaging to the city to stop littering and Dunk That Junk where it belongs viz. garbage bin.

     

    MTV is on a mission to turn the dirty streets into art spaces, and it has partnered with Parle Products to drive this initiative across cities. Supporting the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, Parle MTV Junkyard Project recently launched a war cry across social media with a slogan of Dunk That Junk. A series of viral videos have flooded the social media featuring ace bollywood and TV celebrities dunking the junk through interesting challenges like dizzy dunk, trampoline jump dunk, blindfold dunk etc. Shahruhk Khan, Farhan Aktar, Varun Dhawan, Sonam Kapoor and many others have extended their support to this campaign – which has also received massive participation from digital natives through user generated videos and has garnered overwhelming 1 mn interactions. Giving the dump trucks a makeover is an extension of Dunk That Junk initiative. The regular dumper trucks will be sporting colourful graffiti that shouts out to Dunk That Junk in the dustbin. These colourfully branded Ghanta Gaadis were unveiled today in the capital with much fanfare by the esteemed member of Parliament, Meenakshi Lekhi who was joined by bollywood star Randeep Hooda.           

     

    Speaking about the colourful dump trucks, Member of Parliament Meenakshi Lekhi said, “India?s biggest strength are its young people and I truly believe they have the power to make change happen. Our honourable Prime Minister has also called upon our youth to contribute in the development of the country and I am glad to be a part of such events which are the right efforts in this direction. However, they need to be spoken to in a language they understand and I am delighted that youth brands like MTV are coming forward to deliver a serious message in a fun and interesting manner to mobilize young people to do something for their country.  The Junkyard Project is a great way to get them involved in the process and help make a Swachh CP and a Swachh Bharat.”

    Expressing his support for the initiative, Chairman New Delhi Municipal Corporation Naresh Kumar said, “There’s a lot being done today to raise awareness about the need to make our country clean and beautiful. Seeing our honourable Prime Minister Modiji’s vision of Swachcha Bharat coming alive in such a fun, interesting and clutter-breaking manner is definitely going to motivate a lot of young people across the country to do their bit towards making India a clean and healthy nation. And I’m delighted that we have made a beginning right here in our beautiful city of Delhi.”

     

    Speaking about the initiative, Viacom18 EVP business head English and youth cluster Ferzad Palia said, “At MTV, we have always supported causes and issues that matter. As the ultimate word on the youth, we know how to reach out to, speak to and communicate with the young people to get them motivated about the issues that affect India. And, state of cleanliness is an issue that comes right on the top of that list. Our mission is to transform the dirty junkyards into beautiful art-spaces – the exact opposite of filth. The 300+ college outreach is going to widen the footprint of action on ground. Built on the cusp of Music and Art and supported by the ace Bollywood celebrities, Parle MTV The Junkyard Project is our attempt to drive higher conversations around do-not-litter; that are backed by solid action on-ground.  So, don’t be a punk and Dunk That Junk right now.”

     

    Parle Products GM Pravin Kulkarnii commented, “Being a brand consumed by all sections of the society, we at Parle have continuously strived to spread awareness among the citizens to contribute to the society’s wellbeing. Our Litter Free campaign stands testimony to our endeavour in extending our support towards creating a clean and healthy society. Associating with this project, we aim at taking forward our efforts and reaching out to and helping our young consumers practice the art of cleanliness.”

     

    Joining in to support to initiative, bollywood star Randeep Hooda said, “Who knew cleaning up could be so much fun? MTV really knows how to make the most mundane of things seem exciting. Littering is bad, but anything that requires people to change their habits is not easy to communicate, especially when the people in question are young. Parle MTV The Junkyard Project is a fantastic project that’s interactive and fun, and not preachy. MTV is engaging its fan base in a unique manner and mobilizing them for a good social cause. Let’s take #DunkThatJunk challenges – they are simple, interactive and fun. No wonder the videos are trending on social media. I urge everyone, all you young people out there, to come and support MTV and Parle in its efforts to make India a shining example of how to keep our country clean. And, don’t be a punk, Dunk That Junk. ”

     

    Parle MTV The Junkyard Project is an attempt to get the youth to take a stand on ‘cleanliness’ and also aims to action change on-ground through clean-up drives that are built on music and art. Taking their Litter Free campaign forward, Parle Products has partnered with MTV to create the largest youth clean up movement that will seamlessly integrate across screens including TV, web, mobile and on-ground to mobilize the youth of the country. This unique clean-up movement by MTV has also won critical acclaim and been awarded the Gold at the recently held Appies Asia Conference, as one of the most effective pro-social activity across Asia.

     

    Making the cleaning-up fun and driving conversations, MTV has launched a war cry Dunk That Junk. Bollywood and television celebrities have joined the movement by gamifying the slogan and challenging each other to ‘Dunk That Junk’ through interesting challenges and nominating others to participate in order to drop garbage where it belongs – in the bin! The core of this initiative is to turn the dirty into beauty. Parle and MTV have tied up with 300 colleges across India and multiple graffiti and street art experts to convert chosen undesignated dumping grounds to beautiful graffiti art projects and utility areas.

     

    As with everything, MTV has its own twist on making even the activity of cleaning up the city a lot of fun. MTV has launched Parle MTV The Junkyard Project under the umbrella of MTV Act, which is MTV’s pro-social platform that lives 365 days and strives to create awareness on various social causes.