News Broadcasting
11 new proposals for uplink permission under process: Jaipal Reddy
NEW DELHI: As of date, 11 new proposals for unlinking from India are under process, the government informed Rajya Sabha on 19 July.
Information and broadcasting minister Jaipal Reddy informed Rajya Sabha that as per the applications, all the proposals involve 100 per cent India equity and that no time frame can be indicated as to when the cases would be finally disposed off by the government.
Interestingly, the updated list of channels seeking uplink permission do not include those from Zee Telefilms (for ZeeBiz, a proposed business news channel) and SAB TV, which has said in the recent past that it would launch a news channel around the last quarter this year.
This can mean two things: either the clearance has been obtained or the plans have been put in the backburner for the time being.
The ones which are seeking government clearance, according to information laid in Rajya Sabha, include Falak TV Ltd’s Falak and Al Hind TV, Twenty First Century News Room Productions Ltd’s CAT TV, Ekonkar TV Pvt. Ltd’s Ekonkar TV, Enter 10 TV Pvt. Ltd’s Enter 10 channel, Shalom Communication Pvt. Ltd’s Shalom TV, Senior Media Ltd’s Senior 1 TV and Telugu Cinema Entertainment Pvt. Ltd’s Telugu Cinema.
Meanwhile, in reply to another question, Reddy also told Rajya Sabha that Prasar Bharati (that manages Doordarshan and AIR) has no proposal to change the format and look of DD News.
“Prasar Bharati has informed that there is no such proposal to convert DD News into an entertainment channel as before,” Reddy informed parliament.
Incidentally, Prasar Bharati board also got a part-time member in RN Bisaria. A selection committee headed by the vice-president of India did the selection of Bisaria.
News Broadcasting
Times Network to air JVC Exit Poll across 5 regions on April 29
Four-hour broadcast spans states and Puducherry with data-led analysis
MUMBAI: Times Network is set to roll out what it calls one of its most expansive election programming efforts yet, culminating in the JVC Exit Poll on 29 April, with a multi-hour broadcast spanning key poll-bound regions.
The exit poll will air across Times Now and Times Now Navbharat, beginning at 5pm and 4pm respectively. Co-powered by Vedanta and Jindal Stainless, the programming aims to combine on-ground reportage with data-driven projections across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
The network has deployed over 50 journalists across these regions, gathering voter sentiment and local insights in the run-up to polling. The effort builds on its ongoing election formats such as Election Yatra and Election Premier League, which have tracked campaign narratives and community-level issues.
In parallel, Times Now Navbharat has focused on constituency-level reporting in West Bengal through its Jan Gan ka Mann series, capturing voter opinions across diverse segments.
The coverage has also featured interviews with prominent political leaders. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and V D Satheesan have appeared on the network’s election specials. From Tamil Nadu, voices including deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran, BJP leader K Annamalai and NTK’s Seeman have also featured in discussions.
On the day of the exit poll, the network’s primetime anchors, including Navika Kumar, Zakka Jacob and Sumit Awasthi, will lead the coverage. They will be joined by a panel of political analysts, psephologists and senior journalists offering real-time insights and interpretation of trends.
The programming will integrate grassroots reportage with analytics from the JVC Exit Poll, aiming to give viewers an early sense of electoral outcomes ahead of the official results on 4 May.
With its combined English and Hindi broadcast reach, Times Network is positioning this effort as a comprehensive look at voter sentiment, blending field reporting, data and debate to decode what could lie ahead when the final mandate is revealed.
