“Sansad TV”: A merger of the LSTV and the RSTV

What is the News?

The government of India has announced the merger of the Lok Sabha TV and the Rajya Sabha TV. The channels from now on will be known as Sansad TV.

About the Lok Sabha TV(LSTV):

• The Lok Sabha TV has been in operation since 2006. It was the first Parliamentary channel of India.
• The LSTV was the brainchild of Former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee. He brought the idea of a 24×7 Parliamentary Channel with the objective to familiarise citizens with the functioning of Parliament.

Note: Before the LSTV started functioning as a channel, few selected parliamentary proceedings had been televised since 1989. However, after 2006 a separate dedicated channel was set up for the Lok Sabha.

About the Rajya Sabha TV(RSTV):

• The RSTV was launched in 2011. It will telecast the live proceedings of the Rajya Sabha. It also brings analyses of parliamentary affairs and provides a platform for knowledge-based programmes.
• The budget of the RSTV is bigger than that of the LSTV. The Union Budget allocates funds for the running of channels. The RSTV also employs more people than the LSTV.

Merger of the Lok Sabha TV and the Rajya Sabha TV:

• In 2019, a committee was set up under former Prasar Bharati Chairman Surya Prakash to look into the merger of two channels.
• The merger is being done to avoid duplicity of efforts, resources. Further, establishing Sansad TV will also reduce the financial burden.

Recommendations of the Surya Prakash panel:

• The committee has suggested that a merged Sansad TV should have two separate channels— Sansad 1 and Sansad 2.
• One channel will telecast the live proceedings of the Lok Sabha. On the other hand, the other channel will telecast the live proceedings of the Rajya Sabha.
• When Parliament is not in session, the first channel can air Hindi content and the second channel can air English content. This will result in better branding and increased viewership of Sansad TV.

Source: The Hindu 

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