TN government's intention to close down Sterlite Copper: CM
Chennai, June 26: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K.Palaniswami on Tuesdary reiterated his government's intention to close down Vedanta Ltd's copper smelter unit - Sterlite Copper - in Thoothukudi.
He also said there is no need for calling a separate meeting of the cabinet and decide on closing down of the copper smelter.
Speaking in the assembly, Palaniswami noted that the government has been taking action one after another to shut down the smelter unit like the non-renewal of consent to operate sanction by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) and the disconnection of power supply.
He also wondered whether some leaders of political parties are creating trouble in Thoothukudi, fearing the goodwill the government would earn by shuting down the smelter unit.
Asking where was the need for a protest when the government is taking action, he said one could wonder whether the trouble was created to give a bad name to the government to gain political mileage.
Palaniswami said the government is doing what the opposition parties desire - the shutting down of the Sterlite Copper plant.
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Union government assumes full control over TV ratings, TRAI role curtailed: Report
New Delhi: The Union government has assumed full control over television audience measurement, removing the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) from oversight of the ratings system that underpins the country’s ₹36,000 crore television advertising market, according to a report published on Wednesday.
The report in Mint said the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) now has exclusive authority over the framework governing how television ratings are measured and regulated. TRAI had been entrusted with oversight of TV ratings in 2012 during the UPA government’s tenure. TRAI is no longer mentioned in the relevant policy document, effectively vesting sole authority in the MIB.
The report said TRAI will continue to regulate other aspects of broadcasting, including channel pricing, advertising caps, interconnection and distribution norms, service quality and compliance standards. Its role in determining how ratings agencies track viewing behaviour has been withdrawn.
Television Rating Points (TRPs), which reflect viewership patterns, guide advertisers in deciding where to allocate spending across channels and time slots.
A government source quoted in the report said the ministry could modify TRAI’s decisions even when the regulator oversaw broadcasting.
A former CEO of Prasar Bharati told the newspaper that the MIB has historically regulated rating agencies through licensing and guidelines, and by holding them accountable under existing norms.
During its tenure overseeing ratings, TRAI had taken decisions affecting the broadcast sector, which included capping advertising time at 12 minutes per hour following complaints about excessive commercial breaks and it now remains unclear how these matters will be addressed under the revised arrangement.
Satya N. Gupta, former principal advisor at TRAI, was quoted as saying that merging regulatory functions with policy oversight and removing an independent regulator from the process was a retrograde step.
TRAI’s involvement in broadcasting had earlier attracted criticism as well. In 2012, its consultation paper on quantitative limits on television advertising was viewed by some as overlapping with the Advertising Standards Council of India’s code. Subsequent recommendations covering television audience measurement, ownership of news channels and issues such as paid news had also raised concerns among sections of the industry.
Television ratings have faced scrutiny in recent years, including during the controversy involving the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), where officials of the ratings body were prosecuted over allegations of manipulation of viewership data.
