Views sought on Broadcast Bill

Ahead of a scheduled interaction with the media and entertainment industry, the government today posted the draft Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill for comments, deleting and toning down some provisions that were criticised as "draconian."

"The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting proposes to consult the media and the broadcasting industry organisations to obtain their response to some of the major issues proposed to be covered in the Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill," the ministry said in a consultation paper on the bill.

Though retaining most of the provisions of the earlier Bill, including those on inspection, search and seizure of equipment, the revised Bill has some notable deletions, with one of them being a provision that gave the central government powers to control and manage broadcasting services, or even suspend their operations, in case of a war or a natural calamity of national magnitude.

The government said the draft Bill, put up on the website of the ministry, indicated the "current thinking" of the ministry, and was "not the final view of the ministry or the central government."

The paper added, "These will be further refined after the process of consultation with the media and the broadcasting industry, as well as ministries concerned, is over, and thereafter the Cabinet will consider the final contours of the proposed legislation."

The earlier Bill, which was prepared as a note for the consideration of the Union Cabinet, had the provision of a maximum fine of Rs 50 lakh, which has now been brought down to Rs 25 lakh.

While retaining the 15 per cent overall ceiling on the number of channels a broadcast service provider can have, the new draft Bill omits a portion of the earlier Bill that said no broadcaster shall have more than the prescribed share of the total number of subscribers in a city or a state, subject to the overall ceiling of 15 per cent for the whole country.

The government has maintained most of the restrictions pertaining to accumulation of interest in the new draft Bill.

Missing in the revised Bill is a provision that gave powers to the central government to prescribe the terms and conditions for the levy, collection, and utilisation of the "Public Service Obligation Fund", and the institutional arrangement for carrying out the objectives of the fund.

While retaining most of the powers given to "authorised officers" like inspection, search and seizure of equipment, the government has deleted the provision that gave them power to prohibit a service provider from transmitting a programme or channel if it is not in conformity with the prescribed content code, or if it is likely to promote feelings of disharmony or enmity, hatred or ill-will between religious, racial, linguistic or regional groups, among others.