News Broadcasting
Films Division and NFDC to digitise archives
MUMBAI: The archives of Films Division and National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) will be converted into digital format by 31 March 2007.
The information & broadcasting (I & B) and parliamentary affairs minister P R Dasmunsi has made the announcement at the Consultative Committee yesterday. The consultative committee is attached to the I & B ministry.
According to Dasmunsi, the film archives are part of the India’s heritage and money will be no constraint in the preservation of these treasures.
The NFDC had produced several highly acclaimed films over the years and the issue of strengthening its financial base will be taken up to enable it to sponsor at least 2-3 films every year, Dasmunsi says.
He added that this had become necessary in view of the increased costing of film production and says, “Films export and the promotion of children’s films will also be high on the NFDC agenda.”
The members were unanimous in suggesting that the strengths of Films Division and NFDC needs to be utilized to bring about awareness among new generation about Indian history, culture and freedom struggle.
Some members wanted to know whether the government could make it mandatory for private TV channels to broadcast the documentary films produced by the Films Division, informs the release.
One of the members had suggested that classics available with NFDC could be dubbed in other Indian languages and screened in different parts of the country. While, another suggestion made was to provide adequate space to entertainment in NFDC films so that their quality improves and the films generate viewers’ interest.
Those who attended the meeting included Kirip Chaliha, S. Mallikarjunaiah, Mahendra Prasad Nishad, Bhartruhari Mahtab, Ramdas Athawale, Vijay J. Darda, Ajay Maroo, Shatrughan Sinha, Dr. Satyanarayan Jetiya, Usha Verma and Nirmala Deshpande – all MPs, besides senior officers of I & B ministry.
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:Â 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.
