I&B Ministry
Modi’s Mann ki Baat on 28 February will be the 17th consecutive broadcast
NEW DELHI: The 17th instalment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ will be broadcast on 28 February, just a day before the presentation of the Union Budget for 2016-17 by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
The broadcast will be at 11 am over the entire network of All India Radio. The broadcast will be relayed by all AIR stations, all AIR FM channels (FM Gold and FM Rainbow), local radio stations, Vividh Bharati Stations and five community radio stations.
The regional versions of the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ will be originated by the capital AIR stations in non-Hindi speaking zones at 8 pm on the same day. The regional versions will be relayed by all AIR stations including local radio stations in the respective states.
It will also be broadcast by Doordarshan and other private TV and news channels in India and broadcast simultaneously. Similarly, radio in private sector patches and all DTH operators will also carry it.
It will also be streamed live for global audience and is accessible through mobile app All India Radio Live and on pmindia.nic.in.
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the earlier paper-heavy system created under the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, which has since been repealed.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.
