By IANS
New Delhi : Even as the controversy over the Broadcast Bill continues, the government has convened a two-day meeting of information ministers of states and Union Territories on Tuesday to debate issues relating to the contentious bill and the entertainment industry.
The 26th conference of the IB ministers kicks off with a meeting of secretaries, and will be followed by the ministerial conference. Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi presides over it.
Besides the broadcast bill, the conference will discuss the state governments’ role in the CAS (conditional access system broadcast) rollout in the country, steps to popularise community radio, and appointment of district-level committees to monitor broadcasting content.
Measures to curb piracy of films and rationalization of entertainment tax are high on the agenda, the information and broadcasting ministry said in a statement.
Various proposals of the state governments and UT administrations on diverse issues would also be taken up for discussions.
The government was keen to introduce the Broadcast Bill in the monsoon session of parliament but did not as the broadcasters opposed the content code, saying such a step would shackle the media’s freedom of expression.
Dasmunsi has indicated that the draft content code for news and current affairs that forms a part of the proposed bill may be shelved in favour of a self-regulatory code by the broadcasters.