I&B Ministry
Number of MSOs for DAS areas touches 429 with 200 provisional licensees
NEW DELHI: Even as two months remain for digital addressable system (DAS) Phase III deadline of 31 December, 2015, a total of 429 multi system operators (MSOs) had obtained licences for DAS as on 21 October.
Of these, 226 MSOs have 10-year licences, whereas 203 have obtained provisional licences since the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry has still not received any formal communication of the Home Ministry’s decision to do away with security clearances for MSOs.
According to the last list issued on 30 September, the Ministry had registered a total of 400 MSOs including 173, which were provisional.
Thus while there has been no increase in the number of permanent (10-year) licence holders, the number of provisional MSOs has gone up to 203.
According to the list put on the I&B Ministry’s website, Kal Cables and Digi Cable Network Pvt Ltd of Mumbai remain on the cancellation list.
Thirteen MSOs, which had earlier been granted permanent licences were permitted to change their areas of operation.
The only new entrant in the permanent licence holder is Nilgiri Cable TV Private Ltd for the third and fourth phase of DAS in Tamil Nadu.
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.
