I&B ministry to take final call on Free Dish: Prasar Bharati Board

NEW DELHI: The information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry will take a call on continuing the nowsuspended slot sale policy for DD Free Dish, officials aware of the development said after a board meeting on Monday.

They added that public broadcaster Prasar Bharati will submit a report to the ministry on the aspects of the policy.

DD Free Dish is a free-to-air direct-broadcast satellite television service owned and operated by Prasar Bharati.

According to an official who did not wish to be named, the policy, which was discontinued on the instructions of the ministry, will be “examined, its pros and cons listed and then presented to the ministry to take a final call”.

Private broadcasters have been pushing for an objective and transparent policy for allotment of vacant slots on DD Free Dish and have flagged the concern to the Prime Minister’s Office.

Before it was discontinued, the policy allowed vacant slots to be allotted to private broadcasters through e-auctions. However, the practice was put on hold in 2017 by the I&B ministry as it felt that the policy helped private broadcasters earn more money and did not benefit Prasar Bharati.

Only those broadcasters get to utilise the slots that have already been allotted on payment of a prorata licence fee during the e-auction by Prasar Bharti.

According to another official, the board did not take up the issue of rightsizing the public broadcaster by reducing the strength of the contractual and casual staff.

The issue will now be taken up at the next board meeting.

It, however, agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the ministry for release of funds to pay Prasar Bharati employees.

PVT BROADCASTERS HAVE BEEN PUSHING FOR AN OBJECTIVE AND TRANSPARENT POLICY FOR ALLOTMENT OF SLOTS ON DD FREE DISH