I&B Ministry
Javadekar wants media to suggest ways to strengthen its independence
NEW DELHI: Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar has called for solutions from the media fraternity to encourage freedom of the press while also ensuring responsible journalism.
Javadekar stressed the need to increase the powers of the Press Council of India (PCI) after proper consultations. “We are a democratic country; we do not want to have external control, government control on any format of information. But at the same time, the freedom has not come for free. The freedom mandates us to be used in a responsible way,” he said.
“So it is responsible freedom and to that end the press fraternity and the media fraternity will definitely think and come out with solutions and suggestions to us so that there can be a real freedom and real responsible journalism,” he said, adding that media did not enjoy freedom in all countries like it did in India.
He said as a Press Council member, he had seen what kind of complaints come and also noted that sometimes when Press council censors a publication, it is not even published.
“So there is a need to increase, a bit, the rights of the Press Council after a discussion,” he added. He felt that that the print media continues to be considered reliable.
Speaking about the functioning of the RNI, Javadekar said it had initiated several measures such as online filing of annual statements, quick disposal of title applications and registration cases, creation of e-mail and mobile number database of publishers and owners and automatic SMS intimation.
He was speaking at a function of the Registrar of Newspapers for India (RNI) where he released the report ‘Press in India 2013-2014’,
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.
