I&B Ministry
Chawla new I&B ministry secretary
NEW DELHI: The new Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government has started making bureaucratic appointments and information and broadcasting ministry is amongst the first batch of units to get a new crop of officials.
Navin Chawla has been named as the I&B ministry secretary. He will replace Pawan Chopra who would retire from government service on 31 May, having worked under two ministers —- Sushma Swaraj and Ravi Shankar Prasad — and had been at the helm when some of the controversial issues like conditional access system (CAS) had pitch forked the ministry into limelight.
Chawla, who takes over from Chopra, is not completely new to the I&B ministry as he had been here as a joint secretary some years back.
Chawla, himself an author of sorts — he has penned the biography of the late Mother Teresa — is also said to be close the family of Sonia Gandhi, the chief of the Congress party. The Delhi chatterrati circles have it that Chawlas wife, Rupika, an art historian, is a personal friend of Sonia.
Chawla comes at a time when the ministry is not being racked by any major issue like CAS and also has a minister, Jaipal Reddy, who is regarded as a levelheaded person. But the new secretary would have to dive headlong into the issue of private FM radio operators licence fee issue and may also have to work on the proposed setting up of a broadcast regulatory body, a pet theme of Reddy reiterated several times.However, Chawla would have the benefit of the broadcast bill that had been tabled in Parliament by Reddy himself during his stint as an I&B minister in 1997. Moreover, some work in this regard has also been done by Chopras team, including additional secretary (broadcasting), Vijay Singh.
The I&B ministry would have to look for an additional secretary (broadcasting) too as Singh is likely to move out of the ministry as he is slated to be empanelled for a secretary’s post by July.
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.
