I&B Ministry
Parliamentary Committee: I&B allocations and Plan Execution Strategy
NEW DELHI: A Parliamentary Committee has said it is ‘constrained’ that the quantum allocation for the Information and Broadcasting ministry under the Plan segment so far in the 12th Plan period is insufficient to fulfil the envisaged objectives and has recommended a high level review for requisite enhancement of Plan fund allocation in the ensuing Plan period.
This was particularly so considering the wide mandate of this ministry to reach out to the billion plus population of the country, the Standing Committee for Information Technology which examines issues relating to I&B said.
A scrutiny of trend of utilization of Plan funds during the four years of the 12th Plan Period (2012-13 to 2015-16) indicates that a sum of Rs 2,802.72 crore was spent against the Budget Estimate (BE) allocation of Rs 3,729.53 crore in the corresponding period.
When compared to the Revised Estimate (RE) allocation which was of the order of Rs 2,918 crore for these years, it depicts 96 percent utilization.
The Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) approved for the ministry in the 12th Five Year Plan was Rs 7,583 crore, accounting for 39 percent increase over the 11th Plan allocation.
For the year 2016-17, the Committee said the ministry should take up the matter with the Finance ministry for enhancement of Plan funding at the RE stage. Most importantly, the ministry should also take steps to strengthen its Plan execution strategy so that the fund allocated at the BE stage in the current fiscal is optimally utilized.
The Committee which comprises members of both Houses of Parliament wanted to be apprised of the steps taken by the ministry for overall increase in the allocation of funds and measures taken to scale up financial performance in the year 2016-17.
A close look at the financial performance of the ministry for the year 2015-16 indicated that they were able to spend Rs 734.39 crore on Plan schemes against an outlay of Rs 914.53 crore at the BE Stage.
The reasons for shortfall in utilization of funds during 2015-16 had been broadly attributed to reduction of outlay at the RE stage by the Finance ministry, long processes for procurement of goods and services for Prasar Bharati, and delay in approval of the new schemes for the 12th Five Year Plan period under the sectors particularly in Film and Broadcasting.
The Committee noted that the ministry stated that the low expenditure of Prasar Bharati had poorly reflected on the ministry’s overall expenditure for the year 2015-16. An outlay of Rs 800 crore has been made for financing the Plan schemes of the ministry for the year 2016-17, which is Rs 114.53 crore lesser than the BE allocation made in the year 2015-16. According to the ministry, the overall reduction in allocation of funds would impact financing of the planned schemes.
The Committee which comprises members of both houses of parliament observed that the annual Plan expenditure of the ministry so far during the 12th Plan period, on an average, has been a little over Rs 700 crore.
In its statement, the ministry told the Committee that the GRB for the 11th Plan stood at Rs 5,439 crore for financing the Plan schemes of the ministry. The GBS for the 12th Five Year Plan period was increased by over 39 percent amounting to Rs 7,583 crore during the 12th Plan period. Besides, a provision of Rs 1,000 crore had been kept for Internal and Extra Budgetary Resources (IEBR) by Prasar Bharati for financing the new content development schemes of Prasar Bharati during the 12th Five Year Plan.
The ministry said the increased GBS helped it in achieving various goals and objectives including completion of the New Media Centre and Soochna Bhavan, successfully commemorating 100 years of Indian cinema, launching of Social Media Platform to enable government’s presence and to have direct interface with target audience, increased monitoring capacity of TV channels by the Electronic Media Monitoring Centre, visible increase in community Radio stations, successful completion of Phases I, II, III (substantially) of Cable TV Digitization and launching and operationalization of the Kisan Channel.
The utilization trend of funds during the four years of the 12th Plan (Rs in crores) is:
|
YEAR |
2012-13 |
2013-14 |
2014-15 |
2015-16 |
Total |
|
BE |
905.00 |
905.00 |
1005.00 |
914.53 |
3729.53 |
|
RE |
676.00 |
740.00 |
752.00 |
750.00 |
2918 |
|
Expenditure |
612.10 |
715.22 |
740.78 |
734.39 |
2802.74 |
|
percent Exp w.r.t RE |
91 |
97 |
99 |
98 |
96 (2012-13 to 2015-16) |
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati opens AIR to private content under new policy
NIPP introduces revenue share, sponsored and gratis models
MUMBAI: Radio may be the oldest voice in the room, but it’s learning some very modern tricks. In a bid to stay tuned to changing listener habits, Prasar Bharati has opened the doors of All India Radio to private players under a newly rolled-out content framework. The initiative, titled Notice Inviting Programme Proposals (NIPP), marks a significant shift in how the public broadcaster approaches programming moving from a largely in-house model to a more collaborative, market-aligned ecosystem. Issued by Akashvani’s Directorate General in April 2026, the policy invites private producers, content owners and aggregators to pitch programmes across formats, from radio dramas and documentaries to quiz shows, storytelling and music-led content.
At the heart of the framework lies a three-pronged participation model designed to balance creative freedom with commercial viability. The most prominent route is revenue sharing, where advertising and sponsorship income generated by a programme is split between the producer and the broadcaster. The structure tilts in favour of creators offering a 70:30 split when producers bring in advertising, and 65:35 when monetisation is handled by Prasar Bharati.
Alongside this sits the sponsored model, where producers fully fund and monetise their content, subject to compliance with advertising norms and the AIR Broadcast Code. For those less commercially inclined, a gratis route allows content to be submitted free of cost, with Prasar Bharati retaining all monetisation rights effectively turning the platform into a national distribution channel for diverse voices.
The move comes as legacy media grapples with intensifying competition from private FM networks, streaming platforms and digital audio ecosystems. By repositioning AIR as both a public service broadcaster and a content marketplace, Prasar Bharati appears to be recalibrating its role in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
Importantly, the framework does not dilute editorial control. All submissions must adhere to the AIR Broadcast Code, and proposals are evaluated through a layered process that weighs storytelling quality, production capability, audience appeal and revenue potential. Only proposals crossing a defined threshold move forward, signalling that while access has widened, the bar remains firmly in place.
Operational discipline is another cornerstone of the policy. Producers are required to maintain broadcast-ready content, deliver episode banks in advance and navigate a structured approval process. Crucially, all production costs are borne by the content provider, reinforcing Prasar Bharati’s positioning as a distribution and oversight platform rather than a commissioning entity.
What elevates the initiative further is its scale. The framework spans multiple clusters and stations across India, covering both metro and regional markets, with specific language mandates and submission channels. This not only expands the content pipeline but also deepens linguistic and cultural representation, an area where AIR has historically held an advantage.
In effect, NIPP signals a quiet but meaningful transformation. AIR is no longer just broadcasting to the nation, it is inviting the nation to broadcast with it, blending legacy reach with contemporary content economics in a bid to stay relevant in an increasingly fragmented audio universe.
