I&B Ministry
Amit Khare to start his second tenure as I&B secretary
MUMBAI: He’s back at a post he held just about two years back. Amit Khare, the higher education secretary in the HRD ministry and schools, has been hoicked into the position of secretary, ministry of information & broadcasting (I&B). He replaces Ravi Mittal who has been in the hotseat since December 2019.
Khare had been appointed to the secretary’s post for the first time on 31 May 2018. It was in December last year, that Mittal got the top charge of MIB during a reshuffle. Now, Mittal has been transferred as secretary, department of sports.
Khare is a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service officer .Considered an upright civil servant, he is credited for unearthing the multi-million dollar fodder scam two decades ago in Bihar for which some powerful politicians, including former Bihar chief minister Lalu Yadav, and senior officials have been handed jail sentences of varied time periods.
Khare comes into the I&B ministry at a crucial time when the government is battling hard to stem the spread of the dreaded novel coronavirus SARS-COV2 which has already claimed more than 800 lives and afflicted more than 26,000 Indians. Khare will have an important role to play especially considering that the economic trials and tribulations the TV broadcasting, and advertising and media sectors are facing courtesy the government enforced lockdown nationally for the past month or so. Khare has been relieved of his secretary schools portfolo, while continuing to hold the higher education one.
During a career span of more than 35 years, Khare has held various field postings and has worked from grassroots to the higher levels of governance in both state and central governments. Prior to being additional chief secretary, Jharkhand, Khare served as principal secretary, finance & planning department, Jharkhand. He has served as member secretary in the department of pharmaceuticals, ministry of chemicals & fertilizers, and joint secretary to the in the department of higher education, ministry of human resource development.
I&B Ministry
CBFC speeds up film certification; average approval time cut to 22 days
Over 71,900 films cleared in five years as digital system shortens approval timelines
MUMBAI:Â The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has significantly reduced the time taken to certify films, with the average approval timeline now down to 22 working days for feature films and just three days for short films.
Operating under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the statutory body certifies films for public exhibition in line with the Cinematograph Act, 1952 and the Cinematograph (Certification) Rules, 2024. The rules prescribe a maximum certification period of 48 working days, though the adoption of the Online Certification System has sharply accelerated the process.
Over the past five years, from 2020-21 to 2024-25, the board certified a total of 71,963 films across formats. Of these, the majority fell under the U category with 41,817 titles, followed by UA with 28,268 films and A with 1,878 films. No films were certified under the S category during the period.
Film approvals have also steadily risen in recent years. The CBFC cleared 8,299 films in 2020-21, a figure that peaked at 18,070 in 2022-23 before settling at 15,444 films in 2024-25. During the same period, 11,064 films were certified with cuts or modifications.
Despite the high volume of certifications, outright refusals remain rare. Only three films were denied certification over the last five years, with one refusal recorded in 2022-23 and two in 2024-25.
The board may recommend cuts or modifications if a film violates statutory parameters relating to the sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality, defamation, contempt of court or incitement to an offence.
Filmmakers can challenge CBFC decisions in court. Data shows that such disputes remain limited but have seen some fluctuation. Between 2021 and 2025, a total of 21 certification decisions were challenged before High Courts, with the number rising to 10 cases in 2025.
Responding to a question in the Rajya Sabha, minister of state for information and broadcasting L. Murugan shared the data. The question was raised by Mallikarjun Kharge.
With faster timelines and a largely digital workflow, the certification process appears to be moving at a far brisker pace, signalling a shift towards quicker clearances for India’s growing film output.
