I&B Ministry
Rural development ministry seeks independent producers for promoting schemes
The ministry of rural development plans to rope in independent TV and radio producers to promote its schemes in the interior of the country.
The ministry has invited applications from TV and radio producers for undertaking production of audiovisual software to create awareness about its schemes in the rural parts of the country. The ministry is planning to commission several films, spots, serials, jingles and other motivational, instructional and promotional material in Hindi, English and regional languages.
For television software producers, the ministry expects a minimum five years of experience of handling TV programmes, both with pubcaster Prasar Bharati and satellite channels. Producers vying for the job should boast a minimum annual production turnover of Rs 50 million, have dealt with similar social content of other ministries and should have the capacity to create multi-media programming with in house infrastructure.
Radio software producers have to cough up proof of a minimum annual turnover of Rs 4 million, a fully digital audio studio with digital recording and mixing facilities.
The last date for submitting applications to the DDO, ministry of rural development, New Delhi is 3 May, while the last date for collecting the application forms is 26 April. The ministry will select the producers from a conceptual bid of shortlisted firms.
I&B Ministry
Press Sewa Portal digitises 1.5 lakh records, streamlines periodical registrations: MIB
Online system spans 780 districts; Rs 5.6 crore penalties, 88,315 titles cancelled
NEW DELHI: India’s print media registry has quietly moved from dusty files to digital dashboards. The government has digitised more than 1.5 lakh historical records of newspapers and periodicals and shifted registrations fully online through the Press Sewa Portal.
Introduced under the Press and Registration of Periodicals (PRP) Act, 2023, the portal now handles all applications for registering periodicals, replacing the earlier paper-heavy system created under the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, which has since been repealed.
The digital shift brings a wide range of services onto a single platform. Publishers can now register new periodicals, revise registrations, transfer ownership, file annual statements, pay penalties online and apply for circulation verification without navigating government offices.
As part of the rollout, specified authorities in 780 districts across India have been onboarded onto the platform. Since 1 March 2024, the portal has processed 11,081 applications and issued certificates across different categories.
The transition has also brought stronger compliance. According to government data, Rs 5.63 crore in penalties has been collected through the portal so far. States such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh account for some of the largest penalty collections.
At the same time, the authorities have carried out a major clean-up of inactive or non-compliant publications. A total of 88,315 periodicals have been cancelled nationwide, with Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi among the states reporting the highest number of cancellations.
The government says the system will continue to evolve based on feedback from users. The Press Registrar General of India (PRGI) regularly reviews suggestions to improve services and make compliance easier for publishers.
The full list of registered newspapers and periodicals is available on the PRGI website under the Registered Titles section.
The information was shared in a written reply in the Lok Sabha by minister of state for information and broadcasting and parliamentary affairs L Murugan, responding to a question from Damodar Agrawal.
