Applicants for new TV channels get more time to file eligibility criteria

NEW DELHI: The Information and Broadcasting Ministry today extended till 23 March to submit documents in support of their eligibility criteria for permission to operate television channels according to the amended Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines issued in December last year.

This follows directions of the Delhi High Court that all those who had applied before 5 December 2011 when the Guidelines were issued should be given a further extension. The earlier deadline was 4 March 2012.

This will also apply to applicants whose applications were at various stages of consideration in the Ministry.

The new Guidelines had raised the networth of news and current affairs channels almost seven times from Rs 30 million to Rs 200 million for the first channel and Rs 50 million for each additional channel while general entertainment channels and downlinking of foreign channels will have to show networth of Rs 50 million for the first channel as against Rs 15 million at present, and Rs 25 million for each additional channel.

The period of permission/registration for uplinking/downlinking of channels will be uniform at 10 years. Renewal of the permissions of TV channels will be considered for a period of 10 years at a time.

Despite protests from broadcasters, the condition of non-renewal of licences of channels found guilty of violating the terms and conditions of permission including violations of the Programme and Advertisement Code on five occasions or more remains.

The changes came about 18 months after Trai made its recommendations, since the Ministry had felt those recommendations were too steep and sent its own views to the regulator for taking a final view.