I&B Ministry
FM P-III: A disappointing fortnight of slow & low bids
NEW DELHI: Although Hyderabad and Dehradun continued to lead with bids of Rs 23,43,48,266 and Rs 15,61,00,590, respectively in the FM radio’s Phase III auctions for frequencies, the first fortnight remained disappointing with little movement in the bids or the price percentage increase on completion of 55 rounds.
In fact, the number of rounds fell from four to three for the first time on the 14th day of auction on 21 November 2016. While Muzaffarpur showed a price percentage increase of one, 44 cities have still failed to attract any bids.
Agartala has joined the band of Alappuzha (Alleppey), Erode, Hubli-Dharwad, Nellore, Salem, Vellore and Vijaywada where bids remained at just over Rs 70 million. Bids for Tiruchy increased to just above Rs 50 million and Tirupathi and Puducherry to a little over Rs 40 million. Amravati, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar and Ujjain bid a little over Rs 35 million and Mysuru a little over Rs 32 million.
Thus, apart from minor rise in Agartala and Ujjain, there has been little movement in other cities over the past week. The first day of auction on 26 October 2016 saw a winning price of Rs 1,820 million against the aggregate price of Rs 1,792 million, while the second day saw low bids and no bids from three cities.
Meanwhile, South Asia FM Ltd has been declared as the winning bidder for five radio FM channels, just a day after the commencement of the auction for the second batch of Phase III. The company will be allotted frequencies in Surat, Amritsar, Patna, Chandigarh and Jammu.
South Asia FM Limited, one of the 14 shortlisted bidders, is a public incorporated entity. It is classified as a non-government company and is registered at Chennai. Its authorized share capital is Rs. 6,550,000,100 and its paid up capital is Rs. 6,153,605,100.It is involved in motion picture, radio, television and other entertainment activities.
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) sources told indiantelevision.com that the aim was to continue till all the channels slated in the second batch were auctioned.
This data has been compiled on the basis of system-generated “Final Round Result Report” and “Frequency Identification Report” accessible through auction administrator role.
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I&B Ministry
Government sets up AI governance group to steer policy
AIGEG to align ministries, assess jobs impact, guide AI deployment.
MUMBAI: If artificial intelligence is the engine, the government is now building the dashboard and making sure everyone reads from the same screen. The Centre has constituted a new inter-ministerial body to coordinate India’s approach to AI, formalising a key recommendation from its governance framework and the Economic Survey. The AI Governance and Economic Group (AIGEG), set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, will act as the central platform to align AI-related policy across ministries, regulators and departments, an attempt to bring coherence to what has so far been a fragmented and fast-evolving landscape.
The group will be chaired by union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, with minister of state Jitin Prasada as vice chairperson. Its composition reflects both technological and economic priorities, bringing together the principal scientific adviser, the chief economic adviser, and the CEO of NITI Aayog, alongside key secretaries from telecommunications, economic affairs and science and technology. A representative from the National Security Council Secretariat is also part of the group, while the MeitY secretary will serve as member convenor.
At its core, AIGEG is designed to do two things: coordinate and anticipate. On the policy front, it will review existing regulatory mechanisms, issue guidance across sectors and ensure companies remain compliant with evolving legal frameworks. Beyond that, it will oversee national initiatives on AI governance, with a focus on enabling responsible innovation rather than merely regulating it.
The economic dimension is equally central. The group has been tasked with assessing how AI-driven automation could reshape jobs identifying which roles are most at risk, where those impacts may be geographically concentrated, and whether technology will augment or replace human labour. Based on these assessments, it will develop mitigation strategies and transition plans, signalling a more proactive stance on workforce disruption.
In parallel, AIGEG will work with industry stakeholders to chart a long-term roadmap for AI adoption, categorising use cases into “deploy”, “pilot” or “defer” buckets depending on readiness factors such as data availability, skill levels and regulatory clarity. The aim is to move from broad ambition to structured execution deciding not just what can be built, but what should be built now.
The group will function as the apex layer in India’s AI governance architecture, supported by a Technology and Policy Expert Committee that will track global developments, emerging risks and regulatory priorities. Together, the two bodies are expected to shape both the pace and direction of AI adoption in the country.
In a landscape where technology often outruns policy, the creation of AIGEG signals an attempt to close that gap ensuring that India’s AI journey is not just rapid, but also coordinated, accountable and economically grounded.
