I&B Ministry
Ensure flow of undiluted and unadulterated information to the people: Naidu
NEW DELHI: ,Venkaiah Naidu who has assumed additional charge of Information and Broadcasting held until now by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, has said communication processes are critical for empowering people with information that would enable them to fulfill their aspirations.
He said the government’s mission would be to enable public communication for the development of the country and the community. Naidu told newspersons after taking charge yesterday that he would be guided by the principle of ‘Communication for Development of the Community and the Country” and the basic principles of “Reform, Perform, Transform and Inform”.
The government was a “reservoir of Information” relating to various aspects of a common man’s life. It was important to ensure proper flow of such information -“undiluted and unadulterated” – for broadening common man’s understanding of key policy initiatives of the government. This would facilitate the task of information empowerment, thereby creating an enabling environment for key stakeholders.
The minister said it was important to position various media units as credible brands for effectively serving the information needs of the people. He referred to the process of change ushered in by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which touched upon the attitudes of key stakeholders thereby reorienting our approach and understanding towards the concept of development. In order to achieve this goal, it was important to mainstream effective communication as an input to realize this change.
Jaitley, minister of State for I and B Rajyavardhan Rathore, secretary Ajay Mittal, Director-General (Media and Communication) in Press Information Bureau Frank Noronha and other senior officers of the ministry were present.
Naidu who already holds the urban development, housing and poverty alleviation ministry, but was divested of the parliamentary affairs portfolio in the latest reshuffle.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati sets EPG standards for DD Free Dish platform
New specs define 7-day guide, LCN mapping, and device compatibility.
MUMBAI: Your TV guide just got a backstage pass structured, scheduled, and far more in sync. Prasar Bharati has released detailed technical specifications for Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) services on DD Free Dish, laying down a standardised framework for how channels and programme information are organised and delivered. At the core of the update is a defined EPG data structure, covering genre-based categorisation, scheduling formats, and Logical Channel Numbering (LCN). The aim is simple: make navigation less guesswork and more guided experience across the platform’s over 40 million households.
The specifications also introduce a seven-day programme guide window for each channel, alongside clear rules for channel grouping and LCN mapping effectively deciding not just what you watch, but how easily you find it.
On the technical front, the document outlines requirements for Program Specific Information (PSI) and Service Information (SI), including descriptor usage across tables such as PAT, BAT and NIT. It further details service lists and network linkage parameters, giving OEMs and developers a clearer blueprint for integration.
Importantly, the framework is designed to work seamlessly with television sets equipped with in-built satellite tuners, enabling users to access DD Free Dish directly without additional hardware, an incremental but meaningful step towards simplifying access.
The platform will continue to operate on GSAT-15 transponders, using MPEG-4 compression and DVB-S2 transmission standards, ensuring continuity even as the interface evolves.
While largely technical, the move signals a broader push towards standardisation and user-friendly discovery in India’s free-to-air ecosystem because sometimes, the real upgrade isn’t what’s on screen, but how easily you get there.
