I&B Ministry
FM Phase III 1st stage comes to a close with bids for 97 channels in 56 cities
NEW DELHI: Clocking just one round as compared to four daily rounds on the 33rd day, the first stage of the FM Phase III channel allocation stage has been closed with 97 channels in 56 cities became provisional winning channels with cumulative provisional winning price of about Rs 1156.9 crore against their aggregate reserve price of about Rs 459.8 crore.
While there were no bids for FM channels in 13 cities, there was no activity even the smaller 31 cities that have so far got bids of Rs 1 – 9 crore.
However, the government, which had said the e-auction would continue as long as there was even one bidder – claimed that over 71 per cent channels of the first batch were provisionally won by bidders.
Thus, the summation of provisional winning prices surpassed the cumulative reserve price of the corresponding 97 channels by Rs 697.05 crore or 151.58 per cent.
Overall, cumulative provisional winning price exceeded the total reserve price of the first batch – Rs 550.18 crore – by Rs 606.72 crore or 110.27 per cent.
At the top are three cities namely Delhi at Rs 169.16 crore for one channel, Mumbai at Rs 122.81 crore for two channels and Bengaluru at Rs 109.25 crore for one channel.
The position is the same for other cities having got bids of more than Rs 10 crore with Chennai at Rs 53.38 crore, Ahmedabad at Rs 42.68 crore, Pune at Rs 42.03 crore, Jaipur at Rs 28.34 crore, Chandigarh at Rs 19.04 crore, Hyderabad at Rs 18 crore, Patna at Rs 17.89 crore, Varanasi at Rs 17.49 crore, Cochin at Rs 15.04 crore, Nasik at Rs 14.66 crore, Lucknow at Rs 14 crore and Jodhpur at Rs 11.44 crore. Kolhapur was not very far behind with a bid above Rs 9 crore at Rs 9.44 crore.
Cities like Guwahati, Bhubaneshwar and Jodhpur witnessed robust bidding activity with provisionally won price being as high as 800 per cent over the reserve price for their channels. Overall, 18 cities got provisionally won bidders for their channels at prices more than double the respective reserve prices. The winning price rose by more than 100 per cent above their respective reserve prices in Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Aurangabad, Bengaluru, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kolhapur, Nasik, Patna, Pune, Rourkela and Varanasi, all of which got provisional winning bidders at prices more than double the respective reserve prices.
The cumulative winning price is exclusive of the migration fee, which will take the total revenue even higher, sources in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry said.
The government said e-auction of the first batch consists of two stages – channel allocation stage, and frequency allocation stage. After the channel allocation stage, the frequency allocation stage will commence tomorrow.
During this stage, the provisional winning bidders will be allowed to select FM frequency for the winning channel from the frequencies already identified in the respective city and as mentioned in the notice inviting applications of 2 March, 2015 read with its subsequent amendments.
Frequency selection preference would be based upon the rank of the bidders: that is, Rank 1 bidder would have the first preference to choose from the frequencies already identified. It may be noted that all the identified frequencies were made available for selection and included in the NIA.
After the e-Auction process is over, the government will notify the list of successful bidders.
The Auction Activity Requirement rose to 100 per cent after the 59th round on 14 August, after being 90 per cent after the 37th round on 7 August.
The 13 cities that eluded bidders are Asansol, Gulbarga, Mangalore, Mysore, Puducherry, Rajahmundry, Siliguri, Tiruchy, Tirunveli, Tirupati, Tuticorin, Vijaywada and Warangal.
The demand in most cities fell by up to three per cent and by four per cent below the excess demand at the price in the 124th round in Hyderabad.
I&B Ministry
CBFC speeds up film certification; average approval time cut to 22 days
Over 71,900 films cleared in five years as digital system shortens approval timelines
MUMBAI:Â The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has significantly reduced the time taken to certify films, with the average approval timeline now down to 22 working days for feature films and just three days for short films.
Operating under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the statutory body certifies films for public exhibition in line with the Cinematograph Act, 1952 and the Cinematograph (Certification) Rules, 2024. The rules prescribe a maximum certification period of 48 working days, though the adoption of the Online Certification System has sharply accelerated the process.
Over the past five years, from 2020-21 to 2024-25, the board certified a total of 71,963 films across formats. Of these, the majority fell under the U category with 41,817 titles, followed by UA with 28,268 films and A with 1,878 films. No films were certified under the S category during the period.
Film approvals have also steadily risen in recent years. The CBFC cleared 8,299 films in 2020-21, a figure that peaked at 18,070 in 2022-23 before settling at 15,444 films in 2024-25. During the same period, 11,064 films were certified with cuts or modifications.
Despite the high volume of certifications, outright refusals remain rare. Only three films were denied certification over the last five years, with one refusal recorded in 2022-23 and two in 2024-25.
The board may recommend cuts or modifications if a film violates statutory parameters relating to the sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality, defamation, contempt of court or incitement to an offence.
Filmmakers can challenge CBFC decisions in court. Data shows that such disputes remain limited but have seen some fluctuation. Between 2021 and 2025, a total of 21 certification decisions were challenged before High Courts, with the number rising to 10 cases in 2025.
Responding to a question in the Rajya Sabha, minister of state for information and broadcasting L. Murugan shared the data. The question was raised by Mallikarjun Kharge.
With faster timelines and a largely digital workflow, the certification process appears to be moving at a far brisker pace, signalling a shift towards quicker clearances for India’s growing film output.
