The consolidation of Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV has been finalized after almost two years of work and will be succeeded by a new agency called Sansad TV. Ravi Capoor, a former IAS officer was elected the channel’s Chief Executive Officer on March 1.
Sansad TV will presumably two channels, one of which will broadcast live television with Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
The decision taken by the Chairperson of Rajya Sabha, Venkaiah Naidu, and the Speaker of Lok Sabha, Om Birla, is likely to be for administrative purposes.
In 2019, an expert committee chaired by Prasar Bharati CEO Surya Prakash proposed the strategy, which aims to cut expenses, expedite management of the platform, and redesign the programming to make it a more compelling platform for audiences and advertisers. Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha TV were profit-making organizations, and the channels were filled with commercials mainly from public sector giants and central ministries.
During the recess, the choices will be to run current affairs channels in English and Hindi, or literally shut down one channel and run programmes on the other,” said the senior official involved in the programme.
