I&B Ministry
SK Arora replaces Navin Chawla as I&B secretary
MUMBAI / NEWDELHI: The government today said it has circulated a draft downlinking and uplink policy for feedback. This is an attempt to put a regulatory framework in place for the broadcast sector.
Briefing newspersons today afternoon after taking over as the new information and broadcasting ministry secretary, SK Arora said, “The drafts have been sent to various ministries for comments. The downlink policy proposes to fill a regulatory gap for TV channels that uplink out of India and where the broadcaster technically does not fall within the ambit of the Indian government jurisdiction.”
Arora, information & broadcasting additional secretary Union of India, was today elevated and named as the new I&B secretary. He fills a slot left vacant since 14 May after the incumbent Navin Chawla moved up to a new posting as an election commissioner of India in the Election Commission that is responsible for conducting polls in the country.
Asked about the details of the uplink and the downlink policies, Arora refused to dwell further on the issue until a Cabinet clearance.
To a question on whether broadcasting companies uplinking channels from abroad would have to necessarily register themselves in India under the proposed downlink policy, Arora said that these were issues that “would be looked into, while framing the rules.”
On the issue of radio broadcast policy, with a special eye on FM radio, Arora said that feedback from most related ministries have been obtained, except one, and “soon the policy would be taken to the Cabinet for clearance.”
Dwelling on government thinking and initiatives on attracting foreign investment in various sectors, including media, Arora said all efforts would be made to encourage foreign investment, but refused to go into specifics related to FM radio and whether FII investment would be allowed.
On the proposed framing of service rules for Prasar Bharati, which manages Doordarshan and All India Radio, Arora said that a panel has been set up under the I&B secretary last month to look into various issues, including the “financial structure of Prasar Bharati” and how the organization could augment its revenues without sacrificing its pubcaster role.
“I don’t think both are mutually exclusive (whether to be a pubcaster or think like commercial media organizations). The idea is to see how Prasar Bharati can retain its public broadcaster’s role, while trying to optimize revenues,” he explained, adding the panel has been given a three-month period to sort out issues.
He also ruled out any immediate reduction of the 45,000 workforce in Prasar Bharati, which, according to critics, is one of the main reasons for a mismatch between expenditure and earnings.
Surinder Kumar Arora was posted as additional secretary in the same ministry since October 2004 and is a 1971 batch Indian Administrative Service officer from Andhra Pradesh cadre. Born in October 1948, he is a postgraduate in Political Science as well as in Rural Development.
During his career, Arora has held several prestigious positions such as additional secretary and financial advisor for the ministry of commerce during July 2003-July2004, principal financial secretary in the Andhra Pradesh government for four and a half years from January 1999 and DG of National Institute of Agriculture Extension Management, Hyderabad, under the ministry of agriculture from July 1992 to July1997.
I&B Ministry
Government sets up AI governance group to steer policy
AIGEG to align ministries, assess jobs impact, guide AI deployment.
MUMBAI: If artificial intelligence is the engine, the government is now building the dashboard and making sure everyone reads from the same screen. The Centre has constituted a new inter-ministerial body to coordinate India’s approach to AI, formalising a key recommendation from its governance framework and the Economic Survey. The AI Governance and Economic Group (AIGEG), set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, will act as the central platform to align AI-related policy across ministries, regulators and departments, an attempt to bring coherence to what has so far been a fragmented and fast-evolving landscape.
The group will be chaired by union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, with minister of state Jitin Prasada as vice chairperson. Its composition reflects both technological and economic priorities, bringing together the principal scientific adviser, the chief economic adviser, and the CEO of NITI Aayog, alongside key secretaries from telecommunications, economic affairs and science and technology. A representative from the National Security Council Secretariat is also part of the group, while the MeitY secretary will serve as member convenor.
At its core, AIGEG is designed to do two things: coordinate and anticipate. On the policy front, it will review existing regulatory mechanisms, issue guidance across sectors and ensure companies remain compliant with evolving legal frameworks. Beyond that, it will oversee national initiatives on AI governance, with a focus on enabling responsible innovation rather than merely regulating it.
The economic dimension is equally central. The group has been tasked with assessing how AI-driven automation could reshape jobs identifying which roles are most at risk, where those impacts may be geographically concentrated, and whether technology will augment or replace human labour. Based on these assessments, it will develop mitigation strategies and transition plans, signalling a more proactive stance on workforce disruption.
In parallel, AIGEG will work with industry stakeholders to chart a long-term roadmap for AI adoption, categorising use cases into “deploy”, “pilot” or “defer” buckets depending on readiness factors such as data availability, skill levels and regulatory clarity. The aim is to move from broad ambition to structured execution deciding not just what can be built, but what should be built now.
The group will function as the apex layer in India’s AI governance architecture, supported by a Technology and Policy Expert Committee that will track global developments, emerging risks and regulatory priorities. Together, the two bodies are expected to shape both the pace and direction of AI adoption in the country.
In a landscape where technology often outruns policy, the creation of AIGEG signals an attempt to close that gap ensuring that India’s AI journey is not just rapid, but also coordinated, accountable and economically grounded.
