I&B Ministry
I&B ministry finalizing terms of law on broadcast regulator
MUMBAI: The terms of reference of a law that will bring about a separate broadcast regulator are almost ready.
This was revealed to Indiantelevision.com by Information & Broadcasting secretary SK Arora on the sidelines of the convention for the business of entertainment, Ficci Frames, this morning in Mumbai.
Once the framework of the law is finalized, it would be distributed among the interministerial committee for comments and any possible fine tuning, Arora said,”From here, the document would have to be scrutinized for a final say by the Union cabinet, after which it would then be presented before Parliament.”
While Arora declined to give a time frame under which this process would move forward, he expressed confidence that from his ministry’s end, the law would be ready “at the soonest”.
Queried about the role of the current regulator for both the telecom and broadcast sector, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), Arora noted that the challenges for the broadcast industry and telecom are different. First, it is important that convergence is facilitated within the broadcast sector. After that one can look at facilitating convergence between sectors i.e. broadcast and telecom. The regulatory body will work towards ensuring that the fruits of development are not vitiated by adversarial relations. “The aim of regulation is to preserve development. We will also be coming out with a regulation on content code,” he said.
Ficci is assisting in formulating the draft of the regulation. The Group of Ministers (GoM) who concentrate on the Ice industry will fine-tune it. Then it will be sent to the cabinet. It will be passed when the cabinet approves of it. A further announcement on this regulation is expected in the coming weeks.
Basically it is aimed at being a self regulatory mechanism. Arora however conceded that regulation always lags behind technological changes. The broadcast industry has been no exception. He also stressed the importance of content providers and creators reaching remote areas of the country. “Whether it is cable, DTH, cinema halls, no villager should be left behind. If we work on this, then the potential will be double than what has already been achieved.”
Arora also highlighted the concern of piracy. He said that the government has been working with Ficci on the Optical Disc Law and this work will continue in the months ahead. “The reason why we approach the industry is that we want to have a regulatory framework that helps the industry move forward.”
“Another important area that is growing is animation and gaming. We need investment from foreign players and leaders in this area. The challenge for us is to attract foreign firms in this area. At this time, there are foreign firms coming into India while Indian firms travel abroad. Foreign firms bring their brand in. However, Indian firms when they go abroad do so under an international brand. The exception is the Indian film industry and for this I want to congratulate them,” said Arora.
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.
