News Broadcasting
Sanjeev Srivastava to be new India correspondent for BBC News
NEW DELHI: The BBC has appointed Sanjeev Srivastava, currently India Business and Western India correspondent as its new India correspondent. Srivastava has been covering India in different capacities for the BBC for the last 10 years.
Starting off with the Hindi Service in India and later the World Service in London, Srivastava started the BBC’s first Mumbai Bureau reporting across BBC television and Radio services in English, Hindi and Urdu. His most recent work includes the first exclusive interview with Amitabh Bachchan before his 60th birthday and the first television interview with film star Salman Khan after he came out of jail. Srivastava, says an official release, has travelled extensively all over western Indian especially Gujarat. Prior to joining the BBC, Sanjeev worked with the Times of India and Indian Express.
Sanjeev will be joining the South Asia Bureau in Delhi in March. The BBC’s South Asia Bureau Editor Paul Danahar said “Sanjeev Srivastava is one of India’s respected correspondents. His experience in radio, television and in several languages makes him an ideal person to take up this new position. I was very keen that he should come and join our South Asia team. The BBC has the biggest news operation of any foreign broadcaster in the region so it was important that a high profile posting like India correspondent was filled with someone of Sanjeev’s maturity and experience. The BBC operation in India has been constantly ahead of the pack since 9/11 and Sanjeev, along side our South Asia correspondents Adam Mynott and Jill McGivering, will maintain that track record.”
The BBC has been expanding its South Asia news operation over recent months because of the growing interest in the region from its global audiences. This is driven, in part, by a surge in new audiences in the United States where BBC World TV is now in 86 per cent of American homes, the release says.
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
