Prasar Bharati

Prasar Bharati
Agency overview
Formed 23 Nov 1997
Jurisdiction Republic of India
Headquarters New Delhi
Agency executives
  • Dr. A. Surya Prakash, Chairman
  • Jawhar Sircar(Resigned , CEO
Child agencies
Website www.prasarbharati.gov.in

Prasar Bharati (Hindi: प्रसार भारती); is India's largest public broadcasting agency. It is an autonomous body set up by an Act of Parliament and comprises Doordarshan Television Network and All India Radio, which were earlier media units of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The Parliament of India passed the Prasar Bharati Act to grant this autonomy in 1990, but it was not enacted until 15 September 1997.[1]

Dr. A. Surya Prakash[2] is the current chairperson of Prasar Bharati and Jawhar Sircar is the CEO.[3]

Prasar Bharati Act

The Prasar Bharati Act provides for establishment of a Broadcasting Corporation, to be known as Prasar Bharati, to define its composition, functions and powers.[4] The Act grants autonomy to All India Radio and Doordarshan, which were previously under government control.[4] The Act received assent of President of India on 12 September 1990[1] after being unanimously passed by Parliament. It was finally implemented in November 1997. By the Prasar Bharati Act, all property, assets, debts, liabilities, payments of money due, all suits and legal proceedings involving Akashvani (All India Radio) and Doordarshan were transferred to Prasar Bharati.

Prasar Bharati Board

The Prasar Bharati Act stipulates general superintendence, direction and management of affairs of the Corporation vests in Prasar Bharati Board which may exercise all such powers and do all such acts and things as may be exercised or done by the Corporation.[4]

Prasar Bharati Board consists of:

The President of India appoints Chairman and the other Members, except the ex officio members, nominated member and the elected members.

The Board meetings must be held at least once in three months, every year.

Actress Kajol is named as part-time member for 5 years till November 2021.[5]

Functions and Objectives

The primary duty of the Corporation is to organise and conduct public broadcasting services to inform, educate and entertain the public and to ensure a balanced development of broadcasting on radio and television.[4]

The Corporation shall, in the discharge of its functions, be guided by the following objectives, namely:

Expansion plans

Digitisation of All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan (DD) is going on in full swing, as some of Doordarshan Kendras & AIR Stations are already getting digitised. All new establishments are digital and there are plans to modify the existing ones. New transmitters are being ordered and plans for purchase of digital transmitters are being implemented in phases.

Controversy over Candidate selection

In 2010, as many as 24 candidates out of the 30 selected for the posts of journalists in Doordarshan News were alleged to be selected on the basis of political considerations.[6] For example, one of the successful candidates was closely related to a former Congress Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, another successful candidate was the daughter of a sitting Congress Union minister and another one was a close relative of Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma.[7][8]

The number of applicants called for interview was increased from 25 to 35 to accommodate the daughter of a Congress politician, who held the 33rd rank, and would have otherwise been eliminated at the cut-off stage. Another successful candidate, Anika Kalra Kalha, was not even called for an audition and reporting skills test, and the remark in the relevant columns read “Did not qualify for this stage”. Similarly weightage given to interview was arbitrarily increased 2 days before interviews.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 "PRASAR BHARATI ACT, 1990". Retrieved 2012-03-21.
  2. ↑ "Prasar Bharati Board". Retrieved 2012-03-21.
  3. ↑ "CEO's Desk". Retrieved 2012-03-21.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "The Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990". Retrieved 2012-03-21.
  5. ↑ , http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2016/02/20/kajol-prasar-bharti-board_n_9280420.html
  6. ↑ Garg, Abhinav (14 September 2010). "CAT quashes DD selection of minister's kin". The Times of India. Retrieved 14 September 2010.
  7. 1 2 JEBARAJ, PRISCILLA (NEW DELHI, September 14, 2010). "Doordarshan appointments quashed". the Hindu. Retrieved 19 January 2015. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ↑ "Quashing of 25 Doordarshan employees` appointment stayed". Zee. March 7, 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
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