I&B Ministry
MIB to initiate online registration process for LCOs — Economic Times report
MUMBAI: Is cable TV about to get even more organised and given the respect that is due to it?
If a report appearing in The Economic Times on on 16 January is to be believed it looks like it is. The newspaper reported that the ministry of information & broadcasting (MIB) is set to launch a centralised online registration system for local cable operators (LCOs), extending registration validity from one year to five. This initiative aims to enhance the ease of business in the cable TV sector.
Sources indicated to The Economic Times that the MIB plans to amend the Cable Television Networks (CTN) Rules, 1994 and the regulations act making registration through the Broadcast Seva portal mandatory for LCOs. This is something that every broadcaster has to do.
Once implemented, the MIB will serve as the primary registering authority for LCOs, replacing the current requirement to register at local head post offices. As of January 2022, there were 81,706 LCOs operating nationwide.
A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity to The Economic Times noted, “The ministry is likely to notify the new online registration system this week. It has been a long-standing demand of the industry.”
The current offline registration process hinders the MIB from maintaining a centralised database, limiting its ability to address violations effectively. LCOs currently pay a one-time processing fee of Rs 500 for registration or renewal.
Under Rule 5 of the CTN Rules, LCOs are responsible for providing last-mile connectivity by retransmitting signals from multi-system operators (MSOs) to subscribers through their own infrastructure.
The All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF), which represents national MSOs, informed the parliamentary committee on communications & information technology that around 300,000 employees have lost their jobs over the past four years, with another 300,000 at risk, attributed to a significant decline in the cable TV subscriber base.
According to a FICCI-EY report, the number of cable TV subscribers has dropped from 72 million in 2020 to 62 million in 2023. Yhe latest report which comes out later in 2025 is likely to reveal that this number has dropped by an additional five million in the least.
Traditional linear pay TV has been under tremendous pressure with the arrival of streaming services, cheap data plans being provided by telecom players, ISPs, MSOs and even the LCOs, and the flooding of cheap connected TV sets in the country. India is also a mobile first country where a majority of the youth is consuming content on their handsets.
Recognising this, and to acquire customers quickly, global streaming service have been offering their streaming services at very low subscription rates to Indian customers. There has been an explosion in the amount of consumption of video on YouTube too which in many cases has become the secondary entertainment medium, after DD FreeDish, the free direct to home service provided by pubcaster Doordarshan.
Additionally, many of the second generation family members of the local cable TV operators have simply not followed in their fathers profession and have chosen other fields or they have transitioned to providing broadband internet service that has higher average revenue per customer and hence is more profitable. Video delivery has become a secondary business which is being continued as it is without any goal to expand individual cable TV networks.
I&B Ministry
MeitY & Reliance Foundation launch e-SafeHER cyber training for Women
Programme aims to train one million rural women in cyber safety over three years
NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has partnered with Reliance Foundation and C-DAC Hyderabad to launch ‘e-SafeHER’, a nationwide cyber security awareness programme aimed at empowering one million women across rural India.
Anchored under the Information Security Education and Awareness Programme, the initiative will focus on building digital confidence and safe online practices among women who are increasingly using digital platforms for financial transactions, livelihoods and essential services.
The programme will be rolled out through a community-led model, with training delivered via women’s self-help groups and grassroots networks. C-DAC Hyderabad will develop and localise training content, while Reliance Foundation will drive on-ground implementation using its rural outreach platforms.
Speaking on the launch, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology secretary S Krishnan said, “e-SafeHER is an exciting opportunity to bring together knowledge and collaboration to build a cyber secure Bharat. Through this initiative, women from even the remotest regions will be empowered to participate safely in the digital ecosystem.”
Echoing this, Reliance Foundation director Isha Ambani said the initiative aims to equip women with the skills needed to navigate the online world safely. She added that the goal is to enable one million “Cyber Sakhis” who can confidently adopt digital tools to improve their lives and livelihoods.
The programme will begin with pilot training in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha, before scaling nationwide through a phased approach. It will use multilingual content, audio-visual modules and blended learning formats to ensure accessibility and engagement.
Designed for long-term impact, e-SafeHER will be integrated into existing digital literacy and women’s empowerment programmes, avoiding the need for parallel infrastructure. The initiative also aims to drive measurable behavioural change, from improved awareness of cyber risks to safer digital transactions.
By combining policy, technology and grassroots reach, the programme looks to bridge not just the digital divide, but the digital safety gap, ensuring that inclusion goes hand in hand with security.
