News Broadcasting
ET Now & ET Now Swadesh bring the budget blitz—Facts, figures & fireworks!
MUMBAI: The Union Budget 2025 is around the corner, and India’s economic future is about to get a big reality check. As the nation tunes in for the finance minister’s grand reveal, ET Now and ET Now Swadesh are rolling out an electrifying lineup of in-depth analyses, expert insights, and high-powered discussions under the theme ‘Budget for Viksit Bharat.’
From decoding fiscal policies to tracking market movements and corporate strategies, ET Now and ET Now Swadesh promise a 360-degree budget deep dive, with cutting-edge AR graphics, real-time data insights, and expert takeaways that will leave no stone unturned. Helmed by editor-in-chief Nikunj Dalmia, the editorial teams will bring clarity to the complexities of the Budget—so you can decide if it’s time to pop the champagne or tighten the belt.
Starting with live coverage of the budget speech on 1 February, ET Now will deliver expert-backed insights on what’s in it for businesses, investors, and the ‘aam aadmi’.
1 The economist’s verdict: Veteran economist Swaminathan Aiyar will dissect the Budget’s vision with sharp, data-driven insights into India’s fiscal trajectory.
2 Market masterclass: Experts Kunal Bothra, Nooresh Merani, and Anshul Saigal will craft winning stock market strategies to navigate post-Budget market swings.
3 Multibagger mania: Want to spot the next big wealth creator? Nilesh Shah, Sandeep Tandon, Porinju Veliyath, Hiren Ved, Raamdeo Agrawal, Samir Arora, Sunil Singhania, Vijay Kedia, Saurabh Mukherjea, and Sandip Sabharwal break down the hottest investment picks.
4 Macro moves: Economic heavyweights R Gopalan, Ashok Tyagi, Yashish Dahiya, Rajnish Kumar, and Rohinton Sidwa will provide insights into India’s economic roadmap.
5 Corporate insights: Top business leaders including Sanjiv Puri, Rajiv Memani, R Mukundan, Harsha Vardhan Agarwal, Anant Goenka, Keki Mistry, and Sanjeev Bikhchandani will share industry expectations and reactions.
6 FII watch: Global investors Timothy Moe (Goldman Sachs) and Gautam Chhaochharia (UBS India) will weigh in on India’s attractiveness on the global stage.
The budget in Hindi, simplified and supercharged:
1 ‘Viksit Bharat Ka Budget’ (7 am- 4 pm): Live budget coverage, dynamic market programming, and exclusive insights from Radhika Gupta, Atul Chaturvedi, Yashish Dahiya, Pankaj Tibrewal, Abhay Soi, A. Balasubramanian, Niranjan Hiranandani, and Mihir Vora.
2 ‘Budget Darbaar’ (4 pm): A no-nonsense breakdown of personal finance, tax implications, and investment takeaways from Feroze Azeeze, Anthony Heredia, Alok Agarwal, and Nilesh Shah.
3 ‘Budget & Markets’ (5 pm): Market mavens Gurmeet Chadha and Amit Jeswani decode how the Budget will move the markets.
4 ‘Gaon-Kisaan Ka Budget’ (7 pm): Rural India takes center stage as experts Siraj Hussain, G. Chandrashekhar, G.K. Sood, Gunwant Patil, and B.V. Mehta analyse the budget’s impact on agriculture, farmers, and rural businesses.
To make budget-watching even more rewarding, ET Now and ET Now Swadesh will run contests from 8 am to 4 pm, where lucky viewers can win vouchers for premium smartphones—because who says finance can’t be fun?
With ET Now and ET Now Swadesh bringing the biggest names in economics, business, and markets together, this budget season promises insights, action, and a whole lot of drama. Will this be the budget that fuels India’s march toward prosperity, or will it leave businesses and investors wanting more? Tune in on 1 February, and let’s find out!
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
