Broadcast Bill in next session: Dasmunsi

Earlier, Dasmunsi had said that the Bill was scheduled to be introduced in the second half of the Budget session. But the Bill is now being redrafted following opposition from media houses. As per the original draft, the Bill empowers district and block-level bureaucrats to raid media offices or seize material they deem unsuitable from telecast.

In a recent meeting of the I038;B Ministry, Dasmunsi had instructed officials to ensure that the 8220;Bill is a progressive one8221;. 8220;It is not being entirely redrafted, but certain portions are being looked into and the inputs the Ministry received through largescale interaction with the experts and organisations concerned are being incorporated,8221; senior ministry officials said.

Earlier in the day, while taking part in a workshop on 8216;Gender Equality in Indian media8217;, Dasmunsi announced that there would be a drastic increase in number of women anchors/ newsreaders in Doordarshan and All India Radio. 8220;From August 15, half of those anchoring or reading news in Doordarshan and AIR will be women,8221; Dasmunsi said.