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United Service Institution collaborates with Network18 for the first ‘Indian Military Heritage Festival’
Mumbai: The United Service Institution (USI) of India, the country’s oldest think tank has organised the first Indian Military Heritage Festival, in association with Network18, at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi, on 21-22 October 2023.
With 2022-2023 being the year of India’s leadership of the G-20, the USI is proud to be working in tandem with the Government of India’s strategic policies to affirm our position as a global powerhouse, a truly vibrant democracy, and a rising power that is working for the development of all countries in the global south.
Despite a long and glorious military history and strategic culture going back many centuries, the general public is largely unaware of the different facets of India’s military history, heritage, and security concerns.
The Indian Military Heritage Festival seeks to address this gap in our national discourse and cultural calendar. Its activities will be driven towards enhancing our understanding of the country’s rich military heritage and traditions; contemporary security and strategy concerns; and the push to achieve self-reliance in military capability through the Atmanirbhar Bharat programmes of the Government of India.
Through informed sessions, ranging from discussions on Indigenous Historical Knowledge systems, India and the World Wars, Post-Independence challenges and understandings of war and conflict, analysing war through the lens of fiction and media, the Indian Military Heritage Festival will definitely be the one of its kind, catering to audiences from all walks of life.
The festival intends to engage global as well as Indian think tanks, institutions, corporations, public and private sector undertakings, non-profit organisations, academicians, and research scholars who have been working on topics related to India’s national security, foreign policy, military history, as well as experts in the field of military heritage.
Over the course of two days, the festival will primarily bring forward different understandings and perspectives on issues involving India’s Armed Forces. Through panel sessions and discussions between eminent scholars, practitioners, and retired officers, the sessions will provide understanding of the country’s military history, contemporary security and strategic concerns, social and welfare issues being faced by the armed forces, role of Atmanirbhar Bharat in the defence sector, India’s culture of gallantry, and how we can develop an indigenous strategic vocabulary rooted in our culture and history, moving into the future.
Participants of special sessions include the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Air Staff, as well as Mr Amitabh Kant, G20 Sherpa. A host of eminent scholars and authors will be gracing the occasion with their presence and their insights spread across different panels.
Some of the main highlights of the festival will be military band performances by Tri-Service Bands, including the Army, Navy and Indin Air Force Symphony Bands.
An exhibition to highlight and celebrate select milestones and achievements in our nation’s long and illustrious military history is being organized in collaboration with the National Museum as part of the event.
A Cultural Gala Evening will be held with a special dance performance by Trikayaa Dance Foundation, which will incorporate traditional and martial dance forms to narrate heroic stories of unheard sagas and valour.
Despite a newfound interest in Military History amongst a broad cross section of society in India today, there is a huge deficit in knowledge about Indian Military Systems, customs and history. The Indian Military Heritage Festival seeks to bridge these gaps in our understanding of the interplay between war, the armed forces and society.
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
