I&B Ministry
House panel pans MIB for funds under-use in plan schemes
NEW DELHI: The ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) needs to strengthen its monitoring mechanism by way of periodic review and mid-term appraisal of all major Schemes and undertake necessary corrective measures for proper implementation of Schemes and full utilisation of funds made available to them.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology which also examines issues relating to Information and Broadcasting Ministry has made this comment while noting that the Ministry is hopeful that the link between spending and outcome will improve and the total expenditure would become more focused with the dispensing of the distinction of Plan and non-Plan allocation from 2017-18.
The Committee has taken note of the new initiatives taken for rational allocation of funds and trust that the strategic intervention would reverse the trend and help in prudent and optimal utilisation of funds in the current fiscal.
In its comments with regard to utilisation of the Twelfth Five Year Plan Funds, the Committee noted that the Ministry has on an average utilised 96 percent of Revised Estimates (RE) during the first four years of 12th Five Year Plan (2012-13 to 2015-16).
The performance of the Ministry with regard to financial targets shows that during the entire Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-17), the Ministry has been able to utilise Rs 34.8945 billion against the revised estimated allocation of Rs 37.78 billion.
As against the proposed outlay of Rs 217.31 billion, the erstwhile Planning Commission had approved Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) of Rs 75.83 billion for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-17) for the Ministry.
Further, a provision of Rs 10 billion had been kept for Internal and Extra Budgetary Resources (IEBR) by Prasar Bharati for financing New Content Development Scheme of Prasar Bharati for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-17).
Thus, a total outlay of Rs 85.83 billion had been approved for funding the various Plan Schemes of the Ministry during the Twelfth Plan Period. In each of these years, the Budget allocation to the Ministry was substantially reduced at the RE stage.
This trend however changed during the year 2016-17 where the Budget allocation has actually increased from Rs.8 billion at budget estimate (BE) stage to Rs.8.6 billion at RE stage and the utilisation of funds was 80 percent as on 21 February 2017.
Overall, the Committee noted that despite the Ministry’s efforts to improve plan expenditure and optimise allocation in the Plan Schemes, there have been under utilisation of funds.
The reasons attributed for sub-optimal utilisation relate to finalisation of RE 2016-17 (Plan) in January 2017, long procurement process of Prasar Bharati for procurement of goods and services and delay in approval of the new Schemes under the three sectors.
Noting that the reasons are found to be repetitive and certainly give an impression that the Ministry has failed to bring in the desired administrative efficiency and fiscal planning over the years, the Committee expressed the hope that the procurement process of Prasar Bharati will be streamlined expeditiously.
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I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati opens AIR to private content under new policy
NIPP introduces revenue share, sponsored and gratis models
MUMBAI: Radio may be the oldest voice in the room, but it’s learning some very modern tricks. In a bid to stay tuned to changing listener habits, Prasar Bharati has opened the doors of All India Radio to private players under a newly rolled-out content framework. The initiative, titled Notice Inviting Programme Proposals (NIPP), marks a significant shift in how the public broadcaster approaches programming moving from a largely in-house model to a more collaborative, market-aligned ecosystem. Issued by Akashvani’s Directorate General in April 2026, the policy invites private producers, content owners and aggregators to pitch programmes across formats, from radio dramas and documentaries to quiz shows, storytelling and music-led content.
At the heart of the framework lies a three-pronged participation model designed to balance creative freedom with commercial viability. The most prominent route is revenue sharing, where advertising and sponsorship income generated by a programme is split between the producer and the broadcaster. The structure tilts in favour of creators offering a 70:30 split when producers bring in advertising, and 65:35 when monetisation is handled by Prasar Bharati.
Alongside this sits the sponsored model, where producers fully fund and monetise their content, subject to compliance with advertising norms and the AIR Broadcast Code. For those less commercially inclined, a gratis route allows content to be submitted free of cost, with Prasar Bharati retaining all monetisation rights effectively turning the platform into a national distribution channel for diverse voices.
The move comes as legacy media grapples with intensifying competition from private FM networks, streaming platforms and digital audio ecosystems. By repositioning AIR as both a public service broadcaster and a content marketplace, Prasar Bharati appears to be recalibrating its role in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
Importantly, the framework does not dilute editorial control. All submissions must adhere to the AIR Broadcast Code, and proposals are evaluated through a layered process that weighs storytelling quality, production capability, audience appeal and revenue potential. Only proposals crossing a defined threshold move forward, signalling that while access has widened, the bar remains firmly in place.
Operational discipline is another cornerstone of the policy. Producers are required to maintain broadcast-ready content, deliver episode banks in advance and navigate a structured approval process. Crucially, all production costs are borne by the content provider, reinforcing Prasar Bharati’s positioning as a distribution and oversight platform rather than a commissioning entity.
What elevates the initiative further is its scale. The framework spans multiple clusters and stations across India, covering both metro and regional markets, with specific language mandates and submission channels. This not only expands the content pipeline but also deepens linguistic and cultural representation, an area where AIR has historically held an advantage.
In effect, NIPP signals a quiet but meaningful transformation. AIR is no longer just broadcasting to the nation, it is inviting the nation to broadcast with it, blending legacy reach with contemporary content economics in a bid to stay relevant in an increasingly fragmented audio universe.
