I&B Ministry
TV, Radio urged to mark International Yoga day in befitting manner
NEW DELHI: All television channels, FM Radio, and Community Radio stations are expected to take ‘all possible steps this year also to promote the International Yoga Day (lYD) on 21 June by carryrng special features or in any other befitting manner during the period leading to the occasion’.
In a note on the Information and Broadcasting Ministry website, it has been pointed out that all TV channels, FM channels and community radio stations have contributed immensely to the cause of promotion of Yoga and International Day of Yoga in the past.
The message from the ministry says that it has special significance for India to mark the day in a befitting manner since the genesis of Yoga is associated with this country.
Meanwhile Ayush Minister Shripad Naik said while the Government was prepared to consider the demand for declaring the day as a holiday, no such demand had come so far as Yoga gets over before 8 am in the morning and so there is no need for a holiday
As part of the Internatinal Yoga Day, video clips of 20 celebrity endorsements including Amitabh Bachchan, Shilpa Shetty, Virat Kohli, etc. will be telecast on multiple channels.
Video spots of thirty secnds each on important Yog Asnanas will be telecast on Doordarshan as Asana of the Day.
There will be articles in the print media and social media is expected to carry blogs, on mobile apps, Twitter, Facebook etc.
A new dynamic and interactive IDY Web Portal has been launched on 25 May and carries interesting online quizzes and contests.
The I and B note says that the United Nations General Assembly had on 11 December 2014 declared 21 June to be celebrated as the International Yoga Day (lYD) each year, after the call in this regard by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his address to the UN General Assembly on 27 September 2O14. Modi had stated that “Yoga is an invaluable gift of India’s ancient tradition which embodies unity of mind and body that provides a holistic approach to health and well-being.”
The note said several initiatives have been taken by institutions, both public and private, to promote the cause.
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.
