I&B Ministry
Paradigms of media have expanded vastly with new media coming in: Jaitley
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who was given additional charge of Information and Broadcasting Ministry, today said the paradigms of information have expanded with the steady growth of electronic, print and digital media in the country.
He said the information scenario had changed drastically since the days when the only sources of information were Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Currently, the media landscape has seen unprecedented growth within the radio and new media streams.
He was speaking to the media after taking charge of his new portfolio. Earlier, he held a meeting with senior officials of the Ministry.
In his interaction with the media, Col Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, who has become the Minister of State for I&B, said he would strive to fulfill the responsibilities given to him.
Meanwhile, former I&B Minister Prakash Javadekar tweeted “I enjoyed thoroughly working as MOS (IC) for I&B and MOS for Parliament Affairs; I handed over these charge with great satisfaction.”
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati sets EPG standards for DD Free Dish platform
New specs define 7-day guide, LCN mapping, and device compatibility.
MUMBAI: Your TV guide just got a backstage pass structured, scheduled, and far more in sync. Prasar Bharati has released detailed technical specifications for Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) services on DD Free Dish, laying down a standardised framework for how channels and programme information are organised and delivered. At the core of the update is a defined EPG data structure, covering genre-based categorisation, scheduling formats, and Logical Channel Numbering (LCN). The aim is simple: make navigation less guesswork and more guided experience across the platform’s over 40 million households.
The specifications also introduce a seven-day programme guide window for each channel, alongside clear rules for channel grouping and LCN mapping effectively deciding not just what you watch, but how easily you find it.
On the technical front, the document outlines requirements for Program Specific Information (PSI) and Service Information (SI), including descriptor usage across tables such as PAT, BAT and NIT. It further details service lists and network linkage parameters, giving OEMs and developers a clearer blueprint for integration.
Importantly, the framework is designed to work seamlessly with television sets equipped with in-built satellite tuners, enabling users to access DD Free Dish directly without additional hardware, an incremental but meaningful step towards simplifying access.
The platform will continue to operate on GSAT-15 transponders, using MPEG-4 compression and DVB-S2 transmission standards, ensuring continuity even as the interface evolves.
While largely technical, the move signals a broader push towards standardisation and user-friendly discovery in India’s free-to-air ecosystem because sometimes, the real upgrade isn’t what’s on screen, but how easily you get there.
