I&B Ministry
Budgetary support to I&B upped 3 billion
NEW DELHI: The Budgetary support to the information and broadcasting ministry for 2004-05 fiscal year has been hiked by over Rs 3,000 million, signifying hectic activity to be undertaken by the ministry.
But the total grant-in-aid to pubcaster Prasar Bharati has been shaved off by Rs 320 million, while its loan component has been upped to fund its expansion of broadcast services.
According to the Budget papers laid in Parliament by finance minister Jaswant Singh, while presenting an interim Budget today, I&B ministry’s share stands at Rs 9,550 million, up from Rs 6475 million allocated to it in the last fiscal year.
The hike in the ministry’s allocation was explained by officials as money obtained, by and large, for development of broadcasting services of Doordarshan and All India Radio managed by Prasar Bharati and other related
infrastructure.
So significantly, the loan amount to Prasar Bharati has seen an increase over last fiscal from Rs 690 million to Rs. 1,690 million.
Under the Plan head, Prasar Bharati would get about Rs. 1540 million, while under the non-plan head it would receive Rs 8210 million.
The Budget papers say that out of the I&B ministry budgetary allocation, a sizeable amount would go to Prasar Bharati as a lumpsum for undertaking developmental projects in the remote north-eastern region of the country and Sikkim, bordering China.
The loan to Prasar Bharati has been explained as money to finance the capital expenditure, while the remaining amount of the ministry’s allocation would be spent on sundry activities like expansion of the photo division and
capital expenditure on building a swanky new information centre.
In a year when general elections would be held, the government is sparing no effort to reach out to the farthest corner of the country where cable and/or terrestrial transmission don’t reach.
One of the ambitious projects undertaken by Prasar Bharati is to start a free-of-subscription direct-to-home television service covering the whole India, but mainly targeted at the north-eastern region.
The KU-band DTH service is slated to go on air early April.
Government officials explained that an increase in I&B ministry’s budgetary allocation, mainly meant for Prasar Bharati, was possible because of active cooperation and comprehension of the issue by Planning Commission secretary, RR Shah, who earlier was with the I&B ministry and had held additional charge of director-general of DD.
The Planning Commission is a government think-tank on economic policies.
I&B Ministry
MIB mulls sharp cut in Rs 20 crore net-worth rule for TV rating agencies
Ministry reviews norm to widen competition in ratings
NEW DELHI: The ministry of information and broadcasting is reconsidering a key eligibility norm for television rating agencies, with officials weighing a sharp cut in the minimum net-worth requirement to broaden participation in the audience-measurement market, Storyboard18 reports.
Under the draft policy guidelines issued by the ministry, companies seeking registration as television rating agencies must have a minimum net worth of Rs 20 crore, certified by a statutory auditor. The draft also sets out rules on corporate structure, board composition and cross-holding restrictions.
Officials are now examining whether the threshold should be lowered to around Rs 5–10 crore, following representations from multiple stakeholders who argue that the current bar stifles competition and innovation.
The Rs 20-crore requirement was designed to ensure financial resilience in a sector that directly influences advertising revenues, said a senior industry executive. But advances in data analytics and measurement technologies have significantly reduced the capital intensity of audience tracking, the executive added.
Supporters of the proposed recalibration say the existing benchmark has effectively shut out credible start-ups and research-driven firms. A lower threshold, they argue, would allow technology-led players to challenge legacy models and diversify the ratings ecosystem.
Executives at digital measurement firms also say the move would better reflect the convergence of television and digital viewing. Audience measurement today is increasingly software-driven rather than infrastructure-heavy, one executive said, making high capital thresholds less relevant.
Others, however, warn against weakening financial safeguards in a market that shapes advertising spends running into tens of thousands of crores. Sustaining nationwide panels, audit systems and compliance mechanisms over a ten-year registration cycle requires deep pockets, said a senior broadcaster executive.
Another industry veteran noted that net-worth norms operate alongside bank guarantees and stringent compliance obligations. Any reduction, they said, must be carefully calibrated to avoid undermining the credibility of ratings.
The review comes amid a broader overhaul of the ratings framework. Draft amendments released by the ministry have removed several long-standing restrictions, opening the door for new entrants, including OTT platforms, distribution platform operators and big technology firms, to set up ratings agencies.
The changes are expected to intensify competition and challenge the dominance of the Broadcast Audience Research Council, while placing greater emphasis on digital and cross-platform measurement as viewing habits shift.
Minister of state for information and broadcasting L Murugan has said the ministry issued a revised draft in November 2025 after receiving feedback on the first version released in July. The amendments, he said, aim to modernise India’s TRP system, improve accuracy and representation, and reflect consumption across linear television, digital platforms and connected devices.
Media planners and broadcasters have broadly welcomed the intent of the reforms, though many caution that translating the policy into a credible, multi-platform measurement system will require substantial operational investment.
