India ranks 151st on World Press Freedom Index: Reporters Without Borders
New Delhi, May 16 (PTI): India's ranking on the World Press Freedom Index improved to 151 among the 180 countries surveyed by Reporters Without Borders this year from 159 the previous year.
Finland, Estonia and the Netherlands take up the top three positions in the index that sought responses from more than 5,000 persons from across the world to finalise the rankings.
"We have surveyed 5,000 respondents across the world. It comprises a diverse set including policymakers, journalists and other stakeholders," Thibaut Bruttin, assistant director general of Reporters Without Borders, said at a press conference in Delhi.
The organisation does not reveal the respondents' identity, he said and insisted that it was a diverse set representing different ideologies.
India has nearly 900 privately-owned TV channels, half of which are dedicated to news.
Around 1,40,000 publications are published in more than 20 languages, including some 20,000 daily newspapers with a combined circulation of more than 390 million copies, Reporters Without Borders said.
The US ranks 57th on the index, slipping two positions from the previous year's ranking.
Even in highly-ranked countries such as Australia (29th), Canada (21st) and Czechia (10th), media concentration is a cause for concern, Reporters Without Borders said.
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Bengaluru: Four arrested in prostitution racket; four women rescued
Bengaluru (PTI): Four people, among them two women, were arrested for running a prostitution racket from rented houses in parts of the city, police said on Monday.
With their arrest, police also rescued four women who were allegedly forced into prostitution, they said.
The arrests were made following tip-offs received by the Central Crime Branch’s Women Protection Unit on different dates, indicating that prostitution activities were being carried out in rented houses located in Padmanabhanagar, RK Layout, Sundarnagar, and NGF Layout, police said.
Based on information provided by informants, raids were conducted at these locations on different dates, they said.
“During the operations, four women involved in prostitution were rescued. In connection with the case, a total of four individuals, among them two women who were allegedly forcing others into prostitution, were taken into custody,” a statement issued by the office of Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said.
Upon interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed that they contacted men seeking prostitution services over the phone and arranged for them to visit rented houses, where illegal activities were carried out for monetary gain, it said.
Cases have been registered against the accused at Subramanyapura, Jalahalli, and Jnanabharathi police stations, and further investigation is in progress, police added.
