Prez promulgates ordinance for live feed to DD

Millions of cricket lovers who do not have cable facility would be able to see live coverage of the Indian team's upcoming one-day matches with private broadcasters now left with little choice but to share live feed of important sporting events with public broadcaster Prasar Bharati.

President A P J Abdul Kalam, late last night, promulgated the ordinance pushed by the government, which came under criticism after cricket enthusiasts in many parts of the country could not enjoy direct telecast of the India-West Indies one-day series.

Upset over the government's decision just ahead of the India-Sri Lanka cricket series beginning February 8, private broadcasters have threatened to take legal recourse.

To assuage the feelings of private broadcasters, the government has said a technical committee would look into the matter of encrypting the signals being telecast by Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan to ensure that the feed is not accessed by broadcasters outside India.

The decision to bring an ordinance was taken by the government on Thursday, and Information and Broadcasting Minister P R Dasmunsi met Kalam yesterday and briefed him about the rationale behind the move.