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India's national TV broadcaster Doordarshan to go global, set up a new channel

New Delhi - DD International to present India’s point of view on both global and domestic issues.

Stung by criticism in sections of the global media about the way the government handled the Covid crisis in India, Doordarshan, the state-owned TV broadcaster, has decided to set up a new channel, DD International to project the official point of view.

DD floated an expression of interest (EOI) seeking applications for consultancy service to provide a detailed project report for the proposed channel.

The objective is “to build a global presence for Doordarshan and to establish an international voice for India,” said the document. The new channel will present India’s point of view on both global and domestic issues of significance.

According to S.S. Vempati, CEO, Prashar Bharati, the apex statutory body for Doordarshan and All India Radio, “it has been a long overdue strategic objective to establish international presence for DD.”

At present, DD’s global outreach is through bilateral agreements with a few broadcasters in other countries, besides live streaming through Prasar Bharati’s global digital platform.

The international media has been critically monitoring India for years, and especially during the Covid crisis, hurting the sentiments of many leaders including the prime minister and chief ministers of many states, who are sensitive to such reports in the print and electronic media.