I&B Ministry
Kurnool LCO’s office sealed, 3 others’ being investigated: MIB on Peace TV
NEW DELHI: While denying that the Information and Broadcasting Ministry had asked the Home Ministry to help in keeping a check on illegal channels, the government today said that five complaints had been received in July on the carriage of un-permitted satellite TV channels:
Yesterday, Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiaih Naidu had told the Rajya Sabha that action had ‘reportedly’ been taken in Kurnool and Aurangabad for carriage of illegal channels.
However, the Lok Sabha was told today by Minister of State Rajyavardhan Rathore that the office of Seema Communication Pvt. Ltd. in Kurnool had been sealed and equipment seized This was on a complaint on 9 July 2016 by Rajya Sabha member T G Venkatesh against the LCO for telecasting the non-permitted ‘Peace TV’ in Kurnool District. The complaint was sent to the District Collector, Kurnool on 10 July 2016. The DC carried out the instructions and found that the operator was actually carrying the non-permitted channel and an FIR was lodged by the authorized officer.
However, another complaint on 12 July from Vinay Patil against Yashodeep Cable Network for transmission of the same channel in Aurangabad District was found to be incorrect as the Deputy Commissioner found that this channel was not being carried by the LCO.
Another complaint of 7 July 2016 from Kuldeep Kumar Sahani against Venkata Sai Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. for illegal transmission of Peace TV in Nizamabad District was sent to District Collector, Nizamabad, on 22 July 2016 for further necessary action by the authorized Officer.
A complaint about Peace TV on 9 July 2016 from A Thirupathi Reddy against Sri Sai Communications in Karimnagar District was sent to District Collector, Karimnagar on 22 July 2016 for further necessary action by the authorized Officer.
A fifth complaint of 8 July 2016 from Nandyal Digital TV Communications against Siti Vision Digital Media Pvt. Ltd. for illegal transmission of Peace TV in Kurnool District was sent to District Collector, Kurnool, on 22 July 2016 for further necessary action by the authorized Officer.
Apart from advisories sent to the authorized officers, MSOs, and LCOs, the minister said an appeal was issued on social media platform to the general public to report cases of transmission of un-permitted satellite TV channels by cable operators.
Meanwhile, the minister said that in addition to satellite channels, the ministry has received recommendations from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on its query that the procedure for cable operators to transmit local (ground based) channels had not defined in the Act.
Peace TV from Dubai and as many as fourteen television channels from Pakistan figured in a list of 24 channels which the Home Ministry identified as ‘not conducive to the security environment in the country’ in December 2015.
The Pakistani channels are PTV, PTV Home, PTV World, Geo TV, Dawn, Express, Waqat, Q TV, Madni TV, Noor TV, Hadi TV, Aaj, Filmax and STV.
Out of the other ten, there are two from Nepal (one identified as Nepal, and the other as Kantipur), and one channel each from Bangladesh (NTV Bangladesh), Maldives (TV Maldives), Bhutan (Bhutan Broadcasting Service), and there was a United Kingdom-based channel, Ahmedia Channel.
The other channel from Arab countries was Saudi TV while the nationality of two channels was not disclosed: ARY TV and XYZ TV.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati sets EPG standards for DD Free Dish platform
New specs define 7-day guide, LCN mapping, and device compatibility.
MUMBAI: Your TV guide just got a backstage pass structured, scheduled, and far more in sync. Prasar Bharati has released detailed technical specifications for Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) services on DD Free Dish, laying down a standardised framework for how channels and programme information are organised and delivered. At the core of the update is a defined EPG data structure, covering genre-based categorisation, scheduling formats, and Logical Channel Numbering (LCN). The aim is simple: make navigation less guesswork and more guided experience across the platform’s over 40 million households.
The specifications also introduce a seven-day programme guide window for each channel, alongside clear rules for channel grouping and LCN mapping effectively deciding not just what you watch, but how easily you find it.
On the technical front, the document outlines requirements for Program Specific Information (PSI) and Service Information (SI), including descriptor usage across tables such as PAT, BAT and NIT. It further details service lists and network linkage parameters, giving OEMs and developers a clearer blueprint for integration.
Importantly, the framework is designed to work seamlessly with television sets equipped with in-built satellite tuners, enabling users to access DD Free Dish directly without additional hardware, an incremental but meaningful step towards simplifying access.
The platform will continue to operate on GSAT-15 transponders, using MPEG-4 compression and DVB-S2 transmission standards, ensuring continuity even as the interface evolves.
While largely technical, the move signals a broader push towards standardisation and user-friendly discovery in India’s free-to-air ecosystem because sometimes, the real upgrade isn’t what’s on screen, but how easily you get there.
