Ravish Kumar warns against proposed Broadcast Services Bill
New Delhi: Renowned journalist and former NDTV executive editor, Ravish Kumar, has raised alarms over the latest draft of the Broadcast Services (Regulation) Bill, which aims to revamp the current cable TV regulations in India. The bill proposes to categorize digital content creators, such as Dhruv Rathee, BeerBiceps, and Kumar himself, as “digital news broadcasters,” potentially subjecting them to new regulations and codes of conduct.
Kumar expressed his concerns in a video released on Saturday, warning that the bill represents an attempt by the government to silence dissenting voices.
He emphasized that this issue extends beyond his channel, touching on the broader implications for freedom of speech in the country. “Where is this country headed if the government is afraid of a few people who speak truth to power?” Kumar questioned, highlighting the potential danger to democracy and free expression.
The bill's ambiguity, with the phrase “as may be prescribed” appearing 42 times, has also drawn criticism. Unlike the previous draft, which was open for public consultation, this version has been selectively shared with specific broadcasters and associations, raising concerns about transparency and inclusiveness in the legislative process.
Kumar urged the public to scrutinize the bill and hold the government accountable for what he views as an attempt to stifle independent voices in the digital content creation space.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
