I&B Ministry
Sports Ministry sets up working group to update & revise Sports Code
NEW DELHI: A working group has been set up by the Sports Ministry headed by retired Delhi High Judge CK Mahajan to review the National Sports Development Code of India (NSDCI) and suggest changes.
In a report to be submitted in three months, the Group will also examine the NSDCI from both sports governance and legal angles and fine-tune/revise the same with the purpose of making it more precise and succinct.
It will make specific recommendations on preparation of Electoral College and streamlining of State/District bodies.
The Government has been issuing various instructions from time to time and taking several initiatives to ensure transparency and good governance in the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and in various sports federations of the country.
All the orders, notifications, instructions and circulars issued till 2001 were amalgamated with necessary modifications, into one comprehensive NSDCI 2011, which came into force with immediate effect from 31 January that year.
Further amendments to the various provisions of NSDCI need to be re-examined to ensure suitable amendments to relevant provisions as a lot of developments have taken place in sports sector necessitating more accountability and transparency in the functioning of the sports bodies.
Members of the Group are lawyer Pallavi Shroff, former hockey captain Ajitpal Singh, Arjuna awardee for table tennis Indu Puri, sports journalist Neeru Bhatia, Youth Affairs & Sports Ministry joint secretary Onkar Kedia, and Ministry Advisor Lt Gen Rajiv Bhalla. The Secretary of the Sports Authority of India will be the member secretary.
I&B Ministry
AIDCF moves TDSAT over Waves plan to stream linear TV channels
Industry body flags regulatory gap as OTT push sparks broadcast turf war
NEW DELHI: The battle between traditional television distributors and digital platforms has found its way to the courts, with the All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) moving the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) against Prasar Bharati’s latest OTT play.
At the heart of the dispute is Waves, Prasar Bharati’s OTT platform, which has invited applications to onboard linear satellite TV channels. Aidcf, which represents multi-system operators (msos), argues that this move sidesteps existing broadcasting rules and risks tilting the playing field in favour of digital platforms.
The federation’s petition hinges on a key provision in the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines, 2022. Clause 11(3)(f) allows broadcasters to downlink channels only if they provide signal decoders to recognised distribution platforms such as MSOS, DTH operators, hits operators and iptv platforms. OTT platforms, aidcf points out, do not feature on that list.
In simple terms, AIDCF’s argument is this: if OTT platforms are not officially recognised distributors, they should not be receiving broadcast signals in the first place. By inviting channels onto Waves, the federation claims, Prasar Bharati is opening a backdoor that lets broadcasters bypass long-standing rules.
The concern goes beyond legal interpretation. Aidcf says OTT platforms currently operate without a clear regulatory framework, allowing them to expand into traditional broadcasting territory without the compliance burden that cable and satellite operators must carry. That, it argues, creates an uneven contest.
There is also a warning for broadcasters. If they provide signal decoders to an OTT platform like Waves, they could risk breaching the very conditions under which their downlinking permissions were granted.
For its part, Prasar Bharati’s Waves initiative is positioned as a step towards wider access and digital reach, bringing linear television into the streaming era. But critics say the move blurs the line between regulated broadcasting and largely unregulated streaming.
The matter is expected to come up before tdsat next week. The outcome could do more than settle a single dispute. It may help define how India regulates the fast-merging worlds of television and OTT, where the lines are getting fuzzier by the day and the stakes, sharper than ever.
