National Centre of Films For Children & Young People (N’CYP)

National Centre of Films For Children & Young People (N’CYP), earlier known as Children’s Film Society, India, was formed in 1955 with the aim of harnessing the medium of films to provide healthy entertainment to the children and young people, thereby providing an alternate to commercial cinema which is said to cause adverse impact on children. The aim and hope has been to contribute to the process of better upbringing of young generations, utilising this highly effective medium – Cinema and T.V. The present activities include: a) Production and procurement of films and T.V. serials and their dubbing in Indian languages. b) Exhibition of these through Theatres, Schools and T.V. c) Conduct of International Festival of Films for Children and Young People and participation in such festivals abroad. d) Production of animation films. Films produced by the Centre are entered in various National and Internatioanl Film Festivals. The Centre also organises its own International Film Festival which is held every alternate year.

Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Ltd

Broadcast Engineering Consultant India Ltd. (BECIL), a Govt. of India Enterprise, established in the year 1995, provides consultancy services in the specialized fields of Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology. BECIL has a vast reservoir of experts and integrates the expertise of All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan (DD), the national broadcasting of India, which have built one of the largest Radio Network catering to nearly one billion people and the world's largest Terrestrial Television Network supplemnted by Analoue and Digital satellite Broadcasting services reaching out to millions of TV homes in India and Overseas. OBLECTIVES: To provide world class consultancy services and also undertakes turnkey jobs in the specialized fields of Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology. VISION: To facilitate the growth of Broadcasting in India and associated asian region.

National Film Development Corporation of India

National Film Development Corporation of India is the central agency established to encourage the good cinema movement in the country. The primary goal of the NFDC is to plan, promote and organize an integrated and efficient development of the Indian film industry and foster excellence in cinema. Over the years NFDC has provided a wide range of services essential to the growth of Indian cinema. The NFDC (and its predecessor the Film Finance Corporation) has so far funded / produced over 300 films. These films, in various Indian languages, have been widely acclaimed and have won many national and international awards.

Press Council of India

The Press Council of India was first set up in the year 1966 by the Parliament on the recommendations of the First Press Commission with the object of preserving the freedom of the press and of maintaining and improving the standards of press in India. The present Council functions under the Press Council Act 1978. It is a statutory, quasi judicial body which acts as a watchdog of the press. It adjudicates the complaints against and by the press for violation of ethics and for violation of the freedom of the press respectively. The Press Council is headed by a Chairman, who has by convention, been a retired judge of the Supreme Court of India. The Council consists of 28 other members of whom 20 represent the press and are nominated by the press organisations/news agencies recognised and notified by the Council as all India bodies of categories such as editors, working journalists and owners and managers of newspaper , 5 members are nominated from the two houses of Parliament and 3 represent cultural, literary and legal fields as nominees of the Sahitya Academy, University Grants Commission and the Bar Council of India. The members serve on the Council for a term of three years . The Council was last reconstituted on May 22, 2001. The Council is funded by revenue collected by it as fee levied on the registered newspapers in the country on the basis of their circulation. No fee is levied on newspapers with circulation less than 5000 copies. The deficit is made good by way of grant by the Central Government, through Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Complaints Procedure If you have a complaint against a newspaper, for any publication which you find objectionable and effects you personally, or non-publication of a material, you should first take it up with the editor or other representative of the publication concerned. If the complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may refer it to the Press Council of India. The complaint must be specific and in writing and should be filed/lodged within two months of the publication of impugned news item in case of dailies and weeklies and four months in all other cases, along with the original/photostat copy of the impugned clipping ( English translation if the matter is in vernacular ). You must state in what manner the publication/non publication of the matter is objectionable within the meaning of the Press Council Act, 1978 and enclose a copy of your letter to the editor, pointing out why you consider the matter objectionable. His reply thereto or published rejoinder, if any, may also be attached to it. Declaration stating that the matter is not pending in any court of law is also required to be filed. If a newspaper or journalist is aggrieved by any action of any authority that may impinge on the freedom of the press, he can also file a complaint with the Council. The aggrieved newspaper or journalist may inform the Council about the possible reason for the action of the authorities against him i.e. if it is as a reprisal measure taken by the authorities due to critical writings or as a result of the policy that may effect the freedom of the press ( supporting documents, with English translation if they are in vernacular, should be filed ). Declaration regarding the non pendency of the matter in any court of law is also necessary. On receipt of a complaint made to it or otherwise, if the Council is prima facie satisfied that the matter discloses sufficient ground for inquiry, it issues show cause notice to the respondents and then considers the matter through its Inquiry Committee on the basis of written and oral evidence tendered before it. If on inquiry, the Council has reason to believe that the respondent newspaper has violated journalistic norms, the Council keeping in view the gravity of the misconduct committed by the newspaper, warns, admonishes or censures the newspaper or disapproves the conduct of the editor or the journalist as the case may be. It may also direct the respondent newspaper to publish the contradiction of the complainant or a gist of the Council’s decision in its forthcoming issue. Similarly, when the Council upholds the complaint of the aggrieved newspaper/journalist the Council directs the concerned government to take appropriate steps to redress the grievance of the complainant. The Council may, if it considers necessary , make such observations, as it may think fit, in any of its decisions or reports, respecting the conduct of any authority, including Government.

Registrar of Newspapers for India

The Office of the Registrar of Newspapers for India, popularly known as RNI came into being on 1st July, 1956, on the recommendation of the First Press Commission in 1953 and by amending the Press and Registration of Books Act (PRB Act) 1867. The Press and Registration of Books Act contains the duties and functions of the RNI. On account of some more responsibilities entrusted upon RNI during all these years the office is performing both statutory as well as non-statutory functions. Statutory functions:  Compilation and maintenance of a register of newspapers containing particulars about all the newspapers published in the country;  Issue of certificate of registration to the newspapers published under valid declaration;  Scrutiny and analysis of annual statements sent by the publishers of newspapers every year under Section 19-D of the Press and Registration of Books Act containing information on circulation, ownership etc;.  Informing the District Magistrates about availability of titles to intending publishers for filing declaration;  To ensure that newspapers are published in accordance with the provisions of the Press and Registration of Books Acts;  Verification under Section 19-F of the PRB Act of circulation claims furnished by the publishers in their Annual Statements; and  Preparation and submission to the Government on or before 30th September each year a report containing all available information and statistics about the press in India with particular reference to the emerging trends in circulation and in the direction of common ownership units etc. Non-statutory functions: Formulation of Newsprint Allocation Policy - guidelines and issue of Eligibility Certificate to the newspapers to enable them to import newsprint and to procure indigenous newsprint. Assessing and certifying the essential need and requirement of newspaper establishments to import printing and composing machinery and allied materials.

National Film Archive of India

The National Film Archive of India(NFAI) was establised as a media unit of the Ministry of information and Broadcasting in February 1964. Its three principal objectives are 1. to trace, acquire and preserve for posterity the heritage of Indian cinema; 2. to classify, document data and undertake research relating to films; 3. to act as a centre for the dissemination of film culture. With headquarters at Pune, NFAI has three regional offices at Bangalore, Calcutta and Thiruvananthapuram. NFAI's activities relating to dissemination of film culture are manifold. Its Distribution Library has about 25 active members througout the country and it also organises joint screening programmes on weekly, fortnightly and monthly basis in six important centres. Another important programme is the film teaching scheme comprising long and short term Film Appreciation courses conducted in collaboration with FTII and other educational and cultural institutions.At the International level, NFAI supplied several Indian classics for major screening programmes.

Directorate of Film Festivals

Directorate of Film Festivals was set up by the Government of India in 1973, to organise International and National Film Festivals within the country . It facilitates India's participation in festivals abroad, arrange programmes of Foreign Films in India, Indian Films abroad and holds the National Film Awards function. As a vehicle of cultural change, DFF promotes international freindship, provides access to new trends in world cinema, generates healthy competition and in the process, helps to improve the standards of Indian Cinema. The Objectives of the Directorate are:  Promote good Indian Cinema within the country and abroad.  Provide International exposure to outstanding Indian films.  Screen in festivals, films by outstanding International Directors. The Activities include  International Film Festival of India (IFFI)  National Film Awards and Festival (NFF)  Participation in festivals abroad  Cultural Exchange Programmes (CEP) in India & abroad  Other film programmes  Selection of Indian Panorama Films  Special programmes  Print collection & documentation. An advisory Committee guides the activities of DFF. Provides platform for the best in Indian cinema by organizing the National Film Awards, the Indian Panorama and the International Film Festovals of India every year.Promotes cultural understanding and friendship at international level. Makes latest trends in world cinema accessible to the public country.

DIRECTORATE OF ADVERTISING & VISUAL PUBLICITY

DAVP is the nodal agency to undertake multimedia advertising and publicity of policies and programmes of the Government. The advertisement campaigns of this unit are mostly focussed on communal harmony, national unity, family welfare, health care, rural development, welfare of weaker sections and the handicapped, empowerment of women, drug abuse prevention, economic reforms, promotion of handicrafts, etc. For this purpose electronic media, print media, exhibitions, outdoor publicity like hoardings, kiosks etc. are utilized. The main set-up of DAVP at the headquarters consists of several wings like Campaign, Advertising, Outdoor Publicity, Printed Publicity, Exhibitions, Electronic Data Processing Centre, Mass Mailing, Audio-Visual Cell and Studio. Exhibitions DAVP through its network of 35 field exhibition units including seven mobile exhibition vans, seven family welfare units and 21 general exhibition units put up exhibitions in different parts of the country to publicise various schemes, programmes and policies of the Government. Press Advertisements DAVP released press advertisements on behalf of various Ministries/ Departments and autonomous bodies. Films Division Films division is engaged in the production of documentaries and news magazines for publicity of Central Government programmes. The news magazines and documentaries are released to various theatres throughout the country for compulsory exhibition. The Films Division also caters to the needs of the Directorate of Field Publicity. Over the last 50 years, Films Division has been motivating the broadest spectrum of the Indian public with a view to enlisting their active participation in nation building activities. The aims and objectives of the Division, focused on national perspectives, are to educate and motivate the people in the implementation of national programmes and to project the image of the land and the heritage of the country to Indian and foreign audiences. The Division also aims at fostering the growth of the documentary film movement, which is of immense significance to India in the field of national information, communication and integration. The Division produces documentaries/news magazines from its headquarters at Mumbai, films on defence and family welfare from New Delhi and futurities with a rural bias from the regional centres at Calcutta and Banglalore. The Division caters to over 12,600 cinema theatres all over the country and to the non-theatrical circuits like units of the Directorate of Field Publicity, mobile units of the State Governments, Doordarshan, field units of the Department of Family Welfare, educational institutions and voluntary organizations. The documentaries and newsreels of State Governments are also featured in the Division's release on the theatrical circuit. The Division sells prints, stock shots, video cassettes and distribution rights of documentaries and featurettes in India and abroad. By organizing International Film Festivals for documentary, short and animation films at Mumbai, the Division has emerged as a powerful force behind the documentary film movement in the world.The organisation of the Division is broadly divided into four wings, viz. Production, Distribution, International Documentary and Short Film Festival.

Song and Drama Division (S&DD)

Song and Drama Division (S&DD) was set up to tap the abundant folk and traditional means of communication for the purpose of creating awareness among the people about various national programmes specially in rural areas. The Division has its headquarters at New Delhi and has 12 Regional centers at various parts of the country. The Division utilise a wide range of performing arts such as drama, dance-drama, puppet shows, folk recitals, folk and tribal plays, sound and light programmes etc., to effectively put across various messages on themes like national integration, socio-economic schemes, tribal development projects, promotion of national integration specially in the disturbed areas of Jammu & Kashmir and North Eastern Region. With its Headquaters in Delhi, the Division has 12 Regional Centres, seven Border Centres, six Departmental Drama Troupes, nine Troupes of Armed Forces Entertainment Wing, three Sound and Light Units and a Tribal Pilot Project at Ranchi, apart from approximately 700 registered troupes and about 1000 empanelled artistes of various categories. Border Publicity Troupes The Division has 28 Border Centres in places such as Jodhpur and Guwahati. These Troupes have undertaken publicity in the remote border areas to educate the people about various development schemes and also to counter the propaganda across the border.

Directorate of Field Publicity (DFP)

The Directorate of Field Publicity (DFP) Painting Competition organised by Directorate of Field Publicity started functioning with 32 Field Publicity Units and 4 Regional Offices in 1953 as Five Year Plan Publicity Organisation under the control of the Ministry of I&B. Renamed as Directorate of Field Publicity in 1959, with the passage of time many Field Publicity Units and Regional Offices have been opened. There are presently 22 Regional Offices and 246 Field Publicity Units which are doing extensive publicity coverage in rural areas. The reach of the Directorate is quite extensive and the effort is to reach even the remotest and most inaccessible villages by the Field Publicity Units. The Field Publicity Units use a variety of publicity techniques such as film shows, song and drama, photo exhibitions, group discussions, seminars, symposia, rallies and various competitions like debates, drawing, rural sports etc. All these programmes are targeted specially for the welfare of the people and to educate the masses, particularly those living in the rural and tribal areas. The DFP is also mandated to promote the people’s participation in the development activities, particularly at the grassroot level, and to provide a forum to the people to express their views and reactions on the various national programmes and project the feedback to the Government. The emphasis is on intensive publicity in selected areas by rotation with special attention on remote, tribal and backward areas. Broadly, the aims and objectives of the Directorate are: (i) To project the policies and programmes of the Government by bringing its men and material face to face with the people and to inform them about the plan and schemes formulated for their benefit. (ii) To educate the people about the fundamental national values of democracy, socialism and secularism and reinforce their faith in such values through constant personal contacts. (iii) To establish rapport with the people at the grassroot level for their active participation in the developmental activities as also to mobilize public opinion in favour of implementation of welfare and developmental programmes. (iv) To gather the people’s reactions to the programmes and policies of the Government for appropriate and corrective action by the Government and their implementation down to the village level and duly project to the Government for appropriate and corrective action by the Government. The Directorate thus works as two way channel of communication between the Government and the people. The Directorate is in the process of restructuring and revamping to improve the efficiency by rationalization of manpower. The emphasis is also to target DFP’s activities in the tribal, border and backward areas, which are uncovered by the reach of electronic media. Modernisation is an ongoing process in DFP. It started computerizing its offices and use of e-mail and networking is being done in the DFP (Headquarters) as well as its various Regional Offices and Field Publicity Units. In the Tenth Plan DFP envisages to replace its audio visual equipments with modern gadgets like DVD, Data Projectors and Wireless Public Address System. Computers are being procured for the computerization and office automation programmes. Old vehicles are also envisaged to be replaced.

Photo Division

Photo Division is the biggest production unit of its kind in the country in the field of photography. The Division provides photographs to the media units of the Ministry of Information and broadcasting and other central and state Government. The Division also supplies on payment photographs and tranparencies to the general public. The Division has its headquarters in New Delhi, with well-equipped laboratories and equipment for handling different kinds of photographs stored in the photo-library for easy retrieval of data. Illumination at North Block and South Block on the occasion of 50 Years of Independence International Children's Sports Festival held at Pragati Maidan on Nov 14, 1998 Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India addressing from the Rampart of Red Fort on August 15, 1998. Photo Division has switched over to digital mode of photo transmission. The Division has well equipped laboratories and equipment for handling different kinds of photographhic jobs and assignments both in black-and-white and in colour at its Headquaters in Delhi. News Photo Network has also been installed at its Head Office in New Delhi. The network for linking with all regional offices is in progress. The process of digitally storing photographs on current events in the News Photo Network is currently on. It also feeds photographs to the Press Information Bureau , which makes available these photographs in their Home Page on the Internet . The Division has four regional offices at Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta and Guwahati.

Publications Division

The Publications Division of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has played a pioneering role in the growth and development of book industry in post-Independence India. The Division, which has descended in some ways from the department set up by the British Government to conduct propaganda against the Axis Powers during World War-II, brought out periodicals in not only English, Hindi and Urdu, but also in some foreign languages, e.g. Persian, Arabic and Russian. Its publications included the Arabic version (abridged) of David Copperfield and the Ramayana in a Russian fortnightly. It had its own printing press. While many other departments engaged in counter-propaganda, e.g., films and entertainment, exhibition etc. were wound up, the government, recognizing that providing information was the key to progress, retained this department. It was the Publications Division that carried the message of the Five Year Plans to the people and produced books of general interest and magazines largely for informing or motivating the people. Publications Division (PD) is one of the leading publishing houses of the country and the largest in public sector. It is a repository of books and journals for highlighting matters of national importance and India’s rich and diverse cultural heritage. It holds the exclusive mandate for preserving national heritage and disseminating information through the production and sale of low priced, quality reading material on subjects of national importance. The subjects range from art, history, culture, biographies of eminent persons, land and people, flora and fauna, children’s literature, science and technology and Gandhian Literature to work of reference like India – A Reference Annual. The Division also brings out selected speeches of the Presidents and Prime Ministers of India. With headquarters at Delhi, the Division functions through its various field units – Sales Emporia at New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Patna, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram and Yojana Offices at New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Hyderabad and Bangalore. The offices of Employment News and Journals Unit are located in New Delhi. It carries out sales of publications through its own sale outlets located at important cities as well as through the agents. It also takes part in exhibitions and book fairs to promote sale of books and journals. It has so far published more than 7600 titles, out of which 1500 titles are live on date. Besides books, the Publications Division brings out 21 Journals on issues of national importance and social purpose viz: Bal Bharati, the popular children’s monthly in Hindi, is being published regularly since 1948. Its objective is to provide healthy entertainment to children while educating them at the same time and also inculcating in them human values and scientific temper through short stories, poems, picture stories and informative articles. Ajkal, the prestigious literary magazine in Hindi and Urdu, brings out a number of special issues and covers different aspects of Indian culture and literature. Yojana, the flagship journal of the Division seeks to carry the message of planned development to all sections of society and serves as a forum to promote a healthy discussion representing a cross-section of views on socio-economic aspects of development. Yojana, which is published in 13 languages, presents an all India perspective while highlighting regional development, innovations and initiatives. Kurukshetra, the journal on rural development is serving as a forum for exchange of ideas on programmes, policies and implementation status of development efforts in the rural sector. Employment News/Rozgar Samachar - published in English, Hindi and Urdu every week is the largest circulated career guide today. It carries information about job vacancies in Central/State Government departments, public sector undertakings, educational institutions and reputed private organisations. Its editorial pages include a lead article, diary of events, letters to the editors, quotations, articles on the world of science, besides those on career guidance and other matters of use to examinees. Bharatendu Harishchandra Awards: The Bharatendu Harishchandra Awards, originally instituted to encourage original creative writing in Hindi on mass communication, are also given for children’s literature, women’s problems and national integration. Multi-Media Interactive CDs The Division has entered in the field of e-publishing through its Multi-Media Interactive CD project. It aims at projecting the varied cultural opulence of India among the new-media friendly generation in India and abroad. The multi-media interactive CD-ROM not only includes Audio Visual documentation on the subject but also an electronic book of selected important writings on the subject, interactive quiz, hyper-links to concerned websites and wherever possible, virtual walk throughs and virtual reality features. Our CDs are the first of their kind produced by the Government.

Research, Reference and Training Division (RR&TD)

Research, Reference and Training Division (RR&TD) serves as an information bank and reference centre to provides information feeder service to the media units in their porgramming and publicity campaigning work. The Division also provides research back up on important policies, issues, events and developments in the field of mass media. The Division carries out its activities through:  Issue of backgrounders and reference papers on matters of public importance  Release of biographical sketches of eminent persons  Supply of reference material in connection with important anniversaries etc.  Publication of two reference annuals "India - A Reference Annual" and " Mass Media in India"  Planning and structuring of Indian Information Service (IIS) officers training.  Maintaining a reference library. The division is headed by the Director and is located at New Delhi.The Division compiles two annual reference works entitled 'India - A Reference Annual', an authentic work of reference on India, and 'Mass Media in India', a comprehensive publication on mass comunication in the country.

Press Information Bureau

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) is the nodal agency of the Government of India to disseminate information to the print and electronic media on its various policies, and programmes. The organisation is headed by the Principal Information Officer. There are 8 regional offices and 35 branch offices for disseminating information. The Bureau at the headquarters has a team of officers attached to various Ministries and Departments for the purpose of assisting them in the management of the media and public relations. The PIB acts as an interface between the Government and the media and the Information Officers serve as official spokesmen for the Government. The Principal Information Officer is the Media Advisor to the Government of India . The important functions of PIB are:  The accreditation of Indian and foreign media representatives.  Press briefings and press conferences.  Feedback to the Government on the press and public reaction.  Special service for Urdu and small newspapers  Conduct of press tours to the development projects, remote and backward areas.  Organising special workshops, trainings etc. The information material released by the Bureau in Hindi, English, Urdu and other regional languages reaches to over 8408 newspapers and media organizations. The Bureau at Headquarters has a team of officers who are attached to various Ministries and Departments for the purpose of assisting them in dissemination of information to the media. They also provide feedback to their assigned Ministries / Departments on people's reaction being reflected in media towards Government policies and programmes. As part of the Special Services the Feedback Cell prepares daily digest and special digests based on news stories and editorials from national as well as regional dailies and periodicals.The Features Unit of the Bureau provides backgrounders, updates, infonuggets, features and graphics. These are circulated on the national network and on the Internet and are also sent to the Regional and Branch Offices for translation and circulation to the local press. PIB arranges photo coverage of Government activities and the photographs are supplied to dailies and periodicals published in English and other Indian languages all over the country. PIB is connected to 29 Regional Centres by video conferencing system through NIC studios. This enables media persons at Regional Centres to participate in Press Conference in New Delhi and also in other parts of the country. PIB provides accreditation facility to media persons so as to make easy access to information from the Government sources.

Central Board of Film Certification

The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is the regulatory body and censorship board of India. It reviews film, television ads, and promotional material. Although the CBFC has the legal power of censorship, it operates similarly to the MPAA of the United States. However, the rating system of the CBFC is different from that of the MPAA. Promotional materials and TV ads are also censored by the CBFC. According to the Supreme Court of India: “Film censorship becomes necessary because a film motivates thought and action and assures a high degree of attention and retention as compared to the printed word. The combination of act and speech, sight and sound in semi darkness of the theatre with elimination of all distracting ideas will have a strong impact on the minds of the viewers and can affect emotions. Therefore, it has as much potential for evil as it has for good and has an equal potential to instill or cultivate violent or good behaviour. It cannot be equated with other modes of communication. Censorship by prior restraint is, therefore, not only desirable but also necessary Chairman Vijay Anand was chairman from 2001 until his resignation in 2002. After that, Anupam Kher also worked for the CBFC. Sharmila Tagore is the present chairman of the CBFC. Rating System The rating system they have incorporated is as follows: • U : Universal (or Unrestricted): This rating is given to a movie which has no objectionable material. A movie which has a rating of U contains no or minor violence and sensuality. o This rating is similar to G and PG of the MPAA. • U/A : Unrestricted with adult accompiament. This rating is given to a movie which contains mild violence, language and sensuality. The movie may contain some material unsuitable for children under 12. o This rating is similar to 12A of BBFC and PG-13 of the MPAA. • A : Adults: This rating is given to a movie which contains extreme violence, sexuality (including nudity), frightening images and language. o This rating is similar to R of the MPAA; however some PG-13 films, like The Da Vinci Code have been given this rating • S : Special: This rating is very rare. This rating indicates that the movie is only for special class. The certificate issued by the board is usually shown as a still image at the beginning of a movie. The advertisements shown in a movie theater are also classified and the certificate is shown before their screening. The policy regarding movie trailers is not clear. Criticism CBFC has been several times criticised for minor or very low enforcement in censoring the "A" rated movies for broadcasting in TV channels. In 2006, CBFC declared that no A rated movie should be broadcasted in daytime, without appropriate editing. Since the late eighties, the censor board has become more tolerant of explicit scenes. Earlier, even an "A" movie could not contain any sexual scenes. The censorship in mainstream movies is usually self-imposed by the film producers, or due to the traditional nature of the cast, explicit scenes (e.g. lip-to-lip kissing) used to be extremely rare. There is a marginal adult movie industry in India which does not show frontal nudity. This shows also lack of enforcement in CBFC's main objective - "scenes showing sexual perversions shall be avoided and if such matters are germane to the theme they shall be reduced to the minimum and no details are shown". However, mainstream cinema is still today highly censored, but small budget and "B" grade movies are sometimes not even censored.

Prasar Bharati

Prasar Bharati is India's largest public broadcaster. It is an autonomous corporation of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India and comprises Doordarshan television network and All India Radio. Prasar Bharati was established on November 23, 1997 following a demand that the government owned broadcasters in India should be given autonomy like those in many other countries. The Parliament of India passed an Act to grant this autonomy in 1990, but it was not enacted until September 15, 1997. Baljeet Singh Lalli is the current chairman of Prasar Bharati and Brijeshwar Singh is the current CEO. Singh is also the DG of All India Radio. It is right now working with Nokia to make a DVB-H system for the whole country and metros should be able to use the service in May 2007. Prasar Bharti on being granted the status of autonomy gave the benefits of its becoming a corporation to two of its three cadres; namely Engineering, Programme while the Administrative cadre is still begging for pay parity. The pay of Engineering and Programme staff were upgraded but even the use of RTI has not deterred the CEO Prasar Bharti who in cahoots with the Government has decided to declare Prasar Bharti as a sick unit. Transmitters which other developed countries have declared as outdated are being purchased by Prasar Bharti for reasons unknown. New Transmitters are being ordered and plans for purchase of digital transmitters are already on paper.

Are you all missing those days?

Doordarshan Logo Doordarshan's Screensaver Malgudi Days Dekh Bhai Dekh Ramayan Mile Sur Mera Tumhara Turning Point Bharath Ek Khoj Alif Laila Byomkesh Bakshi Tehkikaat He Man Salma Sultana DD News Reader Vicco turmeric, Nahin cosmetic Vicco turmeric ayurvedic cream Twaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinggggggg Washin powder Nirma, Washing powder Nirma Doodh si safedi, Nirma se aayi Rangeen kapde bhi khil khil jaaye Complan Boy(Shahid Kapoor) and Girl (Ayesha Takia) Surabhi: Renuka Sahane and Siddharth Then were 'Mungerilal ke hasin sapane' and 'karamchand'...'Vikram Betal', etc. How did one survive growing up in the 70's, 80's and 90's? We had no seatbelts, no airbags and sitting in the back of a truck was a treat. Our baby prams had the most gorgeous lead based colours. No such thing as tamper proof bottle tops. Opening kitchen cupboards was a breeze as safety locks were unheard off. Cycling was like a breath of fresh air. No safety helmets, knee pads or elbow pads, with plenty of cardboards between spokes to make it sound like a motorbike. When thirsty we only drank tap water, bottled water was still a mysteryâ€| We kept busy collecting bits & pieces so we could build all sort of things â€| and we were fearless on our bikes even when the brakes failed going downhill. We were showing off how tough we are, by how high we could climb trees & then jumping down.It was great fun. We could stay out to play for hours, as long as we got back before dark, in time for dinner. We walked to school, or sometimes we even rode our bike. We had no mobile phones, but we always managed to find each other. How? No one knows. We lost teeth, broke arms & legs, we got cuts and bruises and bloody noses. nobody complained as we had so much fun, it wasn't anybody's fault, only ours We ate everything in sight, cakes, bread, chocolate, ice-cream, sweet sugary drinks, yet, we stayed skinny by fooling around. And if one of us was lucky to find a 1 litre coca cola bottle we all had a swag from it & guess what? Nobody picked up any germs... We did not have Play Stations, MP3, Nintendo's, I-Pods, Video games, 99 Cable TV channels, DVD's, Home Cinema, Mobile phones, Home Computers, Laptops, Chat-rooms, Internet, etc ... BUT, we had REAL FRIENDS!!!! We called on friends to come out to play, never rang the doorbell, just went around the back. We loved being let loose in the big bad world without bodyguards. We played with sticks and stones, played cowboys and Indians, doctors and nurses, hide and seek, soccer games, over and over again. When we failed our exams we were given a second chance by simply repeating the same grade without visiting psychiatrists, psychologists or counselors. Such were the days!

Doordarshan

Doordarshan is the public television broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati, a public service broadcaster nominated by the Government of India. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in the world in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. Beginning Doordarshan had a modest beginning with the experimental telecast starting in Delhi in September 1959 with a small transmitter and a makeshift studio. The regular daily transmission started in 1965 as a part of All India Radio. The television service was extended to Mumbai (then Bombay) and Amritsar in 1972. Till 1975, seven Indian cities had television service and Doordarshan remained the only television channel in India. Television services were separated from radio in 1976. Each office of All India Radio and Doordarshan were placed under the management of two separate Director Generals in New Delhi. Finally Doordarshan as a National Broadcaster came into existence. Going national National programme was introduced in 1982. In the same year, colour TV was introduced in the Indian market with the live telecast of the Independence Day speech by then prime minister Indira Gandhi on 15 August 1982, followed by the 1982 Asian Games being held in Delhi. The 80s was the era of Doordarshan with soaps like Hum Log (1984), Buniyaad (1986-87) and comedy shows like Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984). The first ever daily soap Hum Log and mythological dramas like Ramayan (1987-88) and Mahabharat (1989-90) glued millions to Doordarshan. Other popular programs included Hindi film songs based programs like Chitrahaar and Rangoli and crime thrillers like Karamchand (starring Pankaj Kapoor),Barrister Roy(starring Kanwaljeet,produced by Shruti Agarwal), Byomkesh Bakshi (starring Rajit kapur) and Janki Jasoos. Some children based shows includeFairy tale Theatre,Dada Dadi ki Kahaniyan,Vikram Betaal.Also a horror serialKile ka Rahasya(1989). Doordarshan was also regularly watched by children for English cartoons like Spider-Man (1967 TV series) and He-Man. Now more than 90 percent of the Indian population can receive Doordarshan (DD National) programmes through a network of nearly 1400 terrestrial transmitters and about 46 Doordarshan studios produce TV programs today. Channels Presently, Doordarshan operates 19 channels – two All India channels, 11 Regional languages Satellite Channels (RLSC), four State Networks (SN), an International channel, a Sports Channel and two channels (DD-RS & DD-LS) for live broadcast of parliamentary proceedings. On DD National, Regional programmes and Local Programmes are carried on time-sharing basis. DD-News channel, launched on 3 November 2003, which replaced the DD-Metro Entertainment channel, provides 24-Hour news service. The Regional Languages Satellite channels have two components – The Regional service for the particular state relayed by all terrestrial transmitters in the state and additional programmes in the Regional Language in prime time and non-prime time available only through cable operators. Sports Channel is exclusively devoted to the broadcasting of sporting events of national and international importance. This is the only Sports Channels which telecasts rural sports like Kho-Kho, Kabbadi etc. something which private broadcasters will not attempt to telecast as it will not attract any revenues. Active Doordarshan It is an Interactive Service of Tata Sky to show 4 TV Channels of Doordarshan which are not available on Tata sky as normal channels. Active Doordarshan channels are Rajyasabha TV, Gyan Darshan, DD Urdu and DD Bharati. DD has its own DTH service called DD Direct Plus. It is free of charge. International Broadcasting DD-India is being broadcasted internationally through Satellite. It is available in 146 countries worldwide, however the information on picking up this channel in other countries is not easily available. In the UK, DD-India was available through the Eurobird Satellite on the Sky system on Channel 833 (the logo is shown as Rayat TV). The timing and programming of DD-India international is different from that of India. Transmissions for Sky Digital U.K. stopped in June 2008 and DirecTV U.S. stopped in July 2008.

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in India

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is a branch of the Government of India is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to information, broadcasting, the press and films in India. as of May 2008, the head of the ministry is Cabinet Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi. The Ministry is responsible for the administration of Prasar Bharati-the broadcasting arm of the Indian Government. The Censor Board of India is the other important body under this ministry being responsible for the regulation of motion pictures shown in India. Mandate The mandate of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting are: •News Services through All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan(DD) for the people •Development of broadcasting and television. •Import and export of films. •Development and promotion of film industry. •Organisation of film festivals and cultural exchanges for the purpose. •Advertisement and visual publicity on behalf of the Government of India. •Handling of press relations to present the policies of Government of India and to get feed-back on the Government policies. •Administration of the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867 in respect of newspapers. •Dissemination of information about India within and outside the country through publications on matters of national importance. •Research, Reference and Training to assist the media units of the Ministry to meet their responsibilities. •Use of interpersonal communication and traditional folk art forms for information/ publicity campaigns on public interest issues. •International co-operation in the field of information & mass media. Criticism and controversies The Ministry has often been criticized for the actions of the various bodies under it: •Doordarshan, the Indian Public Television Broadcaster, has posted losses for several years despite being granted exclusive access to several events including cricket matches and having the largest terrestrial network in the country. •The decision of the Censor Board of India to censor some films due to political reasons like foreign ones while allowing several others which may often contain several suggestive and deeply disturbing scenes has been questionable. •Arbitrary actions taken in the past to ban television channels which ostensibly showed explicit scenes, as well as actions taken to ban general use websites like Yahoo Groups, have been widely criticized in most quarters of the country. •All India Radio is the only radio broadcaster allowed to broadcast news within India, though this is likely to change with the recommendations of the TRAI.

Introduction to Indian Cinema

The history of film in India begins with the screening of Auguste and Louis Lumière moving pictures in Bombay during the July of 1895. Raja Harishchandra—a full length feature film—was initiated in 1912 and completed later. Alam Ara (released 14 March 1931)—directed by Ardeshir Irani—was the first India movie with dialogs. Indian films were soon being followed throughout Southeast Asia and the Middle East—where modest dressing and subdued sexuality of these films was found to be acceptable to the sensibilities of the audience belonging to the various Islamic countries of the region. As cinema as a medium gained popularity in India as many as 1, 000 films in various languages of India were produced annually. Hollywood also gained a foothold in India with special effects films such as Jurassic Park (1993) and Speed (1994) being specially appreciated by the Indian audiences.[26] Expatriates throughout the the United Kingdom and in the United States continued to give rise to an international audiences to Indian movies, which—according to the The Encyclopædia Britannica (2008) entry on Bollywood—'continued to be formulaic story lines, expertly choreographed fight scenes, spectacular song-and-dance routines, emotion-charged melodrama, and larger-than-life heroes.

Communications in India

The Indian Government acquired the EVS EM computers from the Soviet Union, which were used in large companies and research laboratories. Tata Consultancy Services — established in 1968 by the Tata Group — were the country's largest software producers during the 1960s.The 'microchip revolution' of the 1980s had convinced both Indira Gandhi and her successor Rajiv Gandhi that electronics and telecommunications were vital to India's growth and development.MTNL underwent technological improvements. Between 1986-1987, the Indian government embarked upon the creation of three wide-area computer networking schemes: INDONET (intended to serve the IBM mainframes in India), NICNET (the network for India's National Informatics Centre), and the academic research oriented Education and Research Network (ERNET). The Indian economy underwent economic reforms in 1991, leading to a new era of globalization and international economic integration. Economic growth of over 6% annually was seen between 1993-2002. The economic reforms were driven in part by significant the internet usage in India. The new administration under Atal Bihari Vajpayee—which placed the development of Information Technology among its top five priorities— formed the Indian National Task Force on Information Technology and Software Development. Internet gained a foothold in India by 1996.India had a total of 60,000,000 Internet users—comprising 6.0% of the country's population—as of 2008. As of 2008, 4,010,000 people in India also had access to broadband Internet— making it the 18th largest country in the world in terms of broadband Internet users. India had a total of 49,750,000 telephone lines in use by 2008.In the fixed line arena, BSNL and MTNL are the incumbents in their respective areas of operation and continue to enjoy the dominant service provider status in the domain of fixed line services.BSNL controls 79% of fixed line share in the country. In the mobile telephony sector, Bharti Airtel controls 21.4% subscriber base followed by Reliance Communications with 20.3%, BSNL with 18.6%, Vodafone with 14.7% subscriber base as of June 2005.India had a total of 233,620,000 mobile phone connections by 2008.Total fixed-line and wireless subscribers reached 325.78 million as of June, 2008.

Audio-Visual media in India

Radio broadcasting was initiated in 1927 but became state responsibility only in 1930.In 1937 it was given the name All India Radio and since 1957 it has been called Akashvani.Limited duration of television programming began in 1959, and complete broadcasting followed in 1965.[10] The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India) owned and maintained the audio-visual apparatus—including the television channel Doordarshan—in the country prior to the economic reforms of 1991.The Government of India played a significant role in using the audio-visual media for increasing mass education in India's rural swathes. Projected television screens provided engaging education in India's villages by the 1990s. Following the economic reforms satellite television channels from around the world—including BBC, CNN, CNBC, PTV, and other foreign television channels gained a foothold in India.47 million household with television sets emerged in 1993, which was also the year when Rupert Murdoch entered the Indian market. Satellite and cable television soon gained a foothold. Doordarshan, in turn, initiated reforms an modernization. With 562 television stations as of 1997, India ranks 8th in the list of countries by number of television broadcast stations.

Print Media in India

The first major newspaper in India—The Bengal Gazette—was started in 1780 under the British Raj. Other newspapers such as The India Gazette, The Calcutta Gazette, The Madras Courier (1785), The Bombay Herald (1789) etc. soon followed.These newspapers carried news of the areas under the British Raj.The Times of India was founded in 1838 as The Bombay Times and Journal of Commerce by Bennett, Coleman and Company, a colonial enterprise now owned by an Indian conglomerate.The Times Group publishes The Economic Times (launched in 1961), Navbharat Times (Hindi language), and the Maharashtra Times (Marathi language). During the 1950s 214 daily newspapers were published in India. Out of these, 44 were English language dailies while the rest were published in various regional languages. This number rose to 2,856 dailies in 1990 with 209 English dailies. The total number of newspapers published in India reached 35,595 newspapers by 1993 (3,805 dailies). The main regional newspapers of India include the Malayalam language Malayala Manorama (published from: Kerala, daily circulation: 673,000), the Hindi-language Dainik Jagran (published from: Uttar Pradesh, daily circulation in 2006: 580,000), and the Anandabazar Patrika (published from: Kolkata, daily circulation in 2006: 435,000).The Times of India Group, the Indian Express Group, the Hindustan Times Group, and the Anandabazar Patrika Group are the main print media houses of India. Newspaper sale in India increased by 11.22% in 2007.By 2007, 62 of the world's best selling newspaper dailies were published in China, Japan, and India. India consumed 99 million newspaper copies as of 2007—making it the second largest market in the world for newspapers.

Mass Media in India

Indian media—initiated since the late 1700s with print media started in 1780, radio broadcasting initiated in 1927, and the screening of Auguste and Louis Lumière moving pictures in Bombay initiated during the July of 1895 —is among the oldest and largest media of the world. Indian media—private media in particular—has been free and independent throughout most of its history. The period of Emergency in India (1975–1977), declared by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was the brief period when India's media was faced with potential government retribution. India consumed 99 million newspaper copies as of 2007—making it the second largest market in the world for newspapers.[4] By 2008, India has a total of 60,000,000 Internet users—comprising 6.0% of the country's population, and 4,010,000 people in India also have access to broadband Internet as of 2008— making it the 18th largest country in the world in terms of broadband Internet users. India also ranks 8th in the list of countries by number of television broadcast stations by 1997 statistics.