I&B Ministry
PIB fact check unit exposes fake news in 134 videos on 12 YouTube channels
Mumbai: The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has announced it had uncovered fake news spread through 134 videos across 12 YouTube channels, which collectively have several lakh subscribers.
PIB’s fact checking unit revealed that these YouTube channels disseminated videos with misleading claims, including payouts of Rs 51,000 for wedding expenses, benefits totaling Rs 2.5 lakh for ration card holders, and false information about Covid vaccines.
The videos were hosted by channels such as NitiGyan4U, KLOnlineStudy, Sarkari Khabar 21, Media Tak, NewsWave_429, and onlinejobRK, among others.
One video thumbnail from the YouTube channel “onlinejobRk” falsely claimed that prime minister Narendra Modi announced Jan Dhan account owners would receive Rs 10,000 after his win in the 2024 General Elections. The PIB Fact Check Unit debunked this claim on X, warning people to beware of fake news.
Another YouTube channel, AM News YT, falsely claimed that the Chief Justice of India had taken away the elections from Modi.
Similarly, a thumbnail from “NewsWave_429” falsely asserted that the Supreme Court had declared Prime Minister Modi’s defeat. The PIB fact check confirmed on X that no such statement had been made by the Supreme Court of India.
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.
