Soni brings illegal channels to notice of home minister

September 10th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The central government Thursday announced a five percent hike in dearness allowance for its employees and pensioners, with retrospective effect from July 1. The decision was taken at a meeting of the union cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni told reporters here after the meeting.

September 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Indian Institute of Mass Communication will have four more branches - one each in Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Southern and Western India. Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni announced this at the 42nd Convocation function held at IIMC, New Delhi today.

September 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni Tuesday announced plans to set up four more branches of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), India's premier institute of journalism. Soni also announced the upgradation of the IIMC into an international media university.

August 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has said that a regulatory mechanism would be formed for broadcasting only after consultations with stakeholders Soni assured the broadcasters that the industry's larger interests would be taken into consideration while forming the mechanism. " Some ground rules are needed.

July 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni said on Monday that her ministry could intervene to see that the burden of five per cent countervailing duty on Set Top Boxes (STBs) was not passed onto consumers. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Soni said her ministry would wait for a response from manufacturers, Direct to Home (DTH) operators and Multi System Operators (MSOs) who provide the boxes to consumers, before intervening in the matter.

July 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Saying that censorship has no place in the age of Internet, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has said she has no plan to bring the contentious content code on the "front burner" of the government's action plan. She favoured a nodal agency which could disseminate unbiased and authentic information in times of crisis like the Nov 26, 2008, Mumbai attacks.

July 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The union cabinet Thursday extended the six-month-old President's rule in Jharkhand by six months beyond July 18. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said cabinet spokesperson and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni.

June 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - As many as 22 new TV channels are set to spice up the menu of couch potatoes in India, with Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni clearing all pending proposals Friday. Soni has granted clearance to all pending proposals which were received before she took charge, the information and broadcasting ministry said here.

June 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Projecting India in an "incredible manner" during the Commonwealth Games in 2010 will be her top priority, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni said soon after taking charge Monday. "We want to project India in Commonwealth Games in an incredible manner and that is our major priority," Soni told IANS.

June 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Projecting India in an "incredible manner" during the Commonwealth Games in 2010 will be her top priority, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni said soon after taking charge Monday. "We want to project India in Commonwealth Games in an incredible manner and that is our major priority," Soni told IANS.

June 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - A new team at the information and broadcasting ministry got down to business Monday as Minister Ambika Soni mapped out an agenda focusing on better coverage of the 2010 Commonwealth Games and a "harmonious" relationship with the media. Soni, 65, who was tourism and culture minister in the previous government, outlined her priorities that also include mobilising consensus on a contentious content code for news broadcasters.

May 22nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's 19-member cabinet includes three women - Mamata Banerjee, Ambika Soni and Meira Kumar - who took oath of office here Friday. While Soni and Meira Kumar were also ministers in the previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, Trinamool Congress chief Banerjee has been a central minister though in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

April 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Election Commission Sunday issued notice to Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram for offering electoral incentives in Rajasthan in violation of the model code.

March 20th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Election Commission Thursday issued a show cause notice to Union Minister of State for Home Shakeel Ahmad for violating the model code of conduct. 'The Election Commission has issued show cause notice to Shakeel Ahmed for violation of model code of conduct,' a statement issued here said.

December 22nd, 2008 NEW DELHI - Kannada, Telugu, Sanskrit and Tamil are the four classical languages of India, Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni informed the Rajya Sabha Tuesday. Soni said the government has not taken any view in classifying Malayalam as another classical language as they have not received any representation from the Kerala government.