5 media pacts signed, Putin launches RT India

Prasar Bharati already had a pact with TV-Novosti, which owns RT India, but an addendum to the same was signed on Friday in the presence of the two heads of state.

Later in the day, Putin launched RT India operations from a make-shift studio setup at a five-star hotel in New Delhi. With a state-of-the-art studio in the national capital, and a team of over 100 — arguably the biggest overseas venture for the broadcaster — the launch signifies a media collaboration of an unprecedented nature.

The Moscow-based global TV news network will roll out four daily news programmes in English and aims to boost traditional ties between India and Russia as well as the countries’ growing influence in a multipolar world, says a statement put out by the broadcaster.

In the days to come, more media collaborations are likely to emerge from the five pacts signed on Friday, with an aim to bypass Western monopoly in the media space. This is part of Moscow and New Delhi’s broader strategy to create alternative platforms that reflect the perspectives of both nations.