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Cabinet clears partial plan for digitisation of Doordarshan
NEW DELHI: With the cabinet giving the green signal on the proposal for digitalisation of transmitters and studios in the Doordarshan network during the 11th Plan, Prasar Bharati has got a plan allocation of Rs 6.20 billion to begin work on 40 digital terrestrial transmitters and other equipment.
The approval by the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure covers the networking of DTT through satellite, augmentation of Digital Media centers (DMCs) by providing the following: equipment and facilities for maintaining the digital infrastructure; five sets of digital measurement equipment at zonal offices; 60 UPS at High Power Transmitters to ensure uninterrupted power supply, R&D and Training; digitalisation of 31 partially digitalised and 8 analogue studio centers; digitalisation of archiving facilities; and digitalisation of news automation system and e-governance and IT scheme.
The Cabinet is expected to shortly take up a similar proposal by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry seeking Rs 9.20 billion for All India Radio which is already digitising with the adoption of the DRM standard.
Earlier, Doordarshan had set aside an amount of Rs 12.09 billion of a total approved outlay of Rs 13.69 billion just for digitisation in the 11th Five Year Plan (2007-2012).
DD is expected to take the first major step when it commences beaming in High Definition for the Commonwealth Games 2010.
During a cabinet briefing later, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said: “Digitalisation would enable the people in the remotest corner of the country to receive a higher quality of AIR and DD signals.”
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Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
