India’s Information and Broadcasting Secretary, S K Arora, speaking at the India Television Summit 2005, has outlined a new committee, comprising representatives from the industry and social organisations, to develop a policy for regulating content on television channels and films.

The committee aims to develop new guidelines for broadcasters by the end of the year (ed - sounds less like a debate and more like a rubber stamping exercise given the timescale) and will comprise of 30-members - ten a piece from across the entertainment industry, social organisations and the government. Arora will head the committee - which hardly ensures its independence!

It appears that India currently only has 2-3 pages of guidance for broadcasters regarding content. There is a suggestion that the country should move towards greater detail (with less scope for interpretation), with Arora citing the FCC’s 100 pages and Ofcom’s 300 pages of guidance as examples of good regulation. Seems the quality of the guidance is measured by the number of pages!

Arora also said the government was determined to bring forth the proposed Broadcasting Regulation Act as soon as possible, which aims to provide an overall framework for the industry.

If there is anyone in India (or anywhere else for that matter) following this in detail and would like to offer updates please drop us an e-mail for a link to post - blog@ofcomwatch.co.uk

There is an interesting interview with S K Arora on IndianTelevision.com in which he discusses the regulation of the Indian television market - click here.