New Delhi, August 25: The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting on Tuesday organised a National Conference with Information and Public Relations Secretaries of States and Union Territories to strengthen Centre-State coordination in information, broadcasting, media and the creative economy.
The conference, chaired by I&B Secretary Chanchal Kumar, focused on leveraging the cultural strengths, regional talent and institutional capabilities of States and UTs to expand India’s creative economy and strengthen public communication.
Chanchal Kumar said the creative economy, encompassing culture, creativity and commerce, has significant potential to generate employment, attract investment and enhance India’s global influence. He emphasised that there cannot be a single model for developing the sector and called for State-specific approaches based on local strengths.
The conference discussed enhanced cooperation in infrastructure, ease of doing business, capacity building, regional content and development of creative ecosystems. National platforms including WAVES 2027, WAVES Bazaar, WaveX and the Create in India Challenges were highlighted as avenues to provide creators and startups greater access to markets, investors, technology and global partnerships.
Among the key issues discussed were the implementation of the Right of Way mechanism for cable operators, the roadmap for WAVES 2027, strengthening WAVES Bazaar and market access, expansion of public service broadcasting infrastructure and promotion of user-generated creative content on the Waves OTT platform.
The meeting also considered two-way integration of the Indian Cine Hub and Film Facilitation Office portals and adoption of the single-window Indian Cine Hub portal for film-shooting and live-event permissions.
The conference deliberated on strengthening public service broadcasting through content co-production, State-specific programming and enhanced outreach, besides promoting the live-events sector and building the capacities of DIPR officers through IIMC training facilities.
Discussions also covered the transition to the digital framework under the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 through the Press Sewa Portal and strengthening libraries through the supply of books to State Governments under the Samagra Shiksha framework.
The participating State and UT officials shared their experiences and concerns and expressed willingness to collaborate more closely with the Ministry to promote the Orange Economy. The need for greater State-level capacity building, regular engagement and enhanced communication support was also highlighted.
The I&B Secretary called for closer coordination among PIB Regional Offices, State I&PR Departments and regional units of Doordarshan and Akashvani to develop State-specific content and strengthen public outreach.
The conference brought together senior officials from the Centre, States and UTs, reflecting a shared effort to build a stronger, more coordinated media and creative ecosystem across the country. (PIB)
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