The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has sought recommendations from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on whether State and Central Governments can enter the broadcasting sector.

The telecom and broadcasting watchdog, in its recommendations issued in 2008, had said that State Governments and their organs should not be permitted to enter broadcasting and distribution activities.

The Ministry said it had been receiving requests from the Central and State Governments in the past. “The Ministry made this reference recently, as the issue of granting permission to State Governments or its organs to run cable TV networks has been drawing its attention from time to time, particularly with reference to the TRAI recommendations restricting such entities to enter into broadcasting and distribution activities,” it said in a statement.

The Ministry has sought TRAI’s views specifically on whether Central or State Government ministries and departments, owned companies or joint venture companies between Central or State Governments and private sector, or Government funded entities can foray into broadcasting.

Earlier, the Human Resource Development Ministry’s plans to launch educational television channels had hit a roadblock as the I&B Ministry had not granted permission. The Ministry said that as per the policy guidelines, uplinking or downlinking channels can be done only by a company registered under the Companies Act, irrespective of management control.

“This assumes significance in view of the significant growth in the broadcasting sector wherein the number of TV channels and cable connections in India have grown exponentially,” the Ministry said in a statement.

meenakshi.v@thehindu.co.in

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