News Broadcasting
FM broadcaster wins licence, allies with Star
Music Broadcast Pvt. Ltd, a company promoted by the Mittal group, has signed a licence agreement for operating FM channels.
It is one of 16 companies to have signed licence agreements after furnishing bank guarantees amounting to Rs1587.5 million for operating 37 FM channels, according to the United News of India.
Music Broadcast won its licence after committing Rs413 million as bank guarantee. It will be operating from six centres: Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Nagpur, Lucknow and Patna.
The company looks set to be a major player in the FM wars because of its association with the Star TV Network. Star will handle the service end, essentially ad sales, according to Yash Khanna, Star TV’s Head of Communications.
Queried whether Star was also looking at providing content for the channel, Khanna said he could not comment as discussions were still in progress. Details of the contract were being worked out, he said. Once the final agreement had been reached a clear picture would emerge, he added. Though letters of intent were issued to 26 companies for operation of 93 channels, only 16 companies won licences.
However, nine broadcasting companies, who had been successful in the bidding, had filed five cases in Delhi High Court. “These are being heard simultaneously,” Information & Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj said in the Rajya Sabha. The modalities of Star’s deal with Music Broadcast will be watched with interest as a pointer to how the FM ‘wars’ may play out.
News Broadcasting
WITT Summit 2026 concludes in New Delhi
Babar Azam’s comical diving attempt goes viral as league introduces anti-dew measures.
MUMBAI: The WITT Summit just wrapped up with enough big ideas to fill a policy playbook because when India’s leaders, thinkers and icons gather under one roof, even the conversations hit sixes. The eighth edition of TV9 Network’s flagship What India Thinks Today (WITT) Summit 2026 concluded on Saturday after two days of dynamic discussions at its New Delhi venue. India’s largest multi-domain public policy and culture summit brought together political leaders, policymakers, sports icons, artists and technology innovators to examine the forces shaping contemporary India and its global standing.
Prime minister Narendra Modi delivered the keynote address on the theme “India and the World” for the third consecutive year. In a wide-ranging speech, he addressed the ongoing conflict in West Asia, calling for restraint and compassion while highlighting India’s continued development trajectory despite global turmoil.
The summit featured candid conversations with state leaders. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy articulated a people-first governance model and contrasted it with other development approaches. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav declared that Left-wing extremism had been effectively eliminated in his state and highlighted preparations for the upcoming Kumbh Mela. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann defended his government’s record, citing the closure of 19 toll plazas and creation of the Sadak Suraksha Force. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar expressed confidence in Congress prospects in Assam and addressed recent allegations against him.
On geopolitics and national security, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia outlined India’s ambition to become a builder of trusted digital infrastructure for the world, citing the rapid 5G rollout and village-level 4G connectivity.
Cricket received significant attention. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly praised player freedom and trust as hallmarks of great leadership and named MS Dhoni as the greatest captain due to his World Cup successes. India women’s team bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi credited the BCCI and Women’s Premier League for building a pipeline of world-class talent behind the team’s recent ODI World Cup triumph.
The summit also hosted the inaugural AI² Awards 2026, celebrating the convergence of human creativity and machine intelligence in storytelling and content creation. Poet and kathavachak Kumar Vishwas delivered a nuanced take on India’s concept of Dharma and criticised the recent arrest of an 80-year-old Shankaracharya. Veteran lyricist Sameer Anjaan and storyteller Neelesh Misra reflected on changing music trends and artistic responsibility in the wake of a recent controversy involving Nora Fatehi.
In a country where conversations often run as deep as the Ganges, the WITT Summit proved once again that when leaders, thinkers and storytellers come together, the real winner is public discourse lively, layered and refreshingly unafraid to tackle the big questions shaping India’s tomorrow.
