Parliamentary Panel tells MIB to expand use of AI in India’s Broadcasting sector

The Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, in its Nineteenth Report presented to the Lok Sabha and laid in the Rajya Sabha on August 19, has called for deeper integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in India’s information broadcasting sector.

The Committee, in its Eleventh Report (18th Lok Sabha), had noted and appreciated that “embracing the era of Artificial Intelligence (AI), on 26th May, 2024, DD Kisan had introduced two AI news anchors, AI Krish and AI Bhoomi. These AI anchors can speak in fifty languages and are capable of delivering news 24X7 and are providing information to viewers about (a) Agricultural happenings including research in the Country as well as at global level; (b) Trends in agriculture mandis (markets); (c) Weather-related News; and (d) Information related to Government schemes.”

The Committee also highlighted the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s initiative of launching “Samvad,” describing it as “a dashboard which provides information on real-time basis,” and noted that the Ministry is “integrating AI tools in the translation module of DD or their web portal/social media.”

While lauding these efforts, the Committee had suggested additional areas for AI integration:

(i) To explore partnerships with academic institutions and private sector AI companies to develop new AI applications in broadcasting.

(ii) To monitor misinformation and disinformation trends and in identifying potential challenges;

(iii) To integrate AI tools into content creation process;

(iv) To automate and integrate AI tools with services that require minimal human interference;

(v) AI solutions for document management, predictive analysis in policy-making and optimizing administrative processes, etc;

(vi) To enhance the efficiency, accessibility, and engagement of Ministry’s information dissemination processes through AI-driven innovation.

Responding to the Committee, the Ministry said, “AI-based content generation can greatly benefit DD News in several areas, including AI anchors for recorded programs, AI-generated voiceovers, automated identification of packages and sound bytes, and translation into multiple regional languages. These efforts shall be enhanced through partnerships with academic institutions and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP). Additionally, collaboration with young creative talents using AI tools—such as those showcased at the recent WAVES Summit—shall bring innovative ideas and energy to content development.”

The Committee has requested the Ministry to provide a “concrete plan/roadmap of the Ministry, for AI-integration and for harnessing benefits of AI in content creation, programming, broadcasting, etc.” It also sought to be “kept apprised of the outcome of the efforts made for having partnerships with academic institutions, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and collaboration with young creative talents using AI tools which were showcased at the recently organised WAVES Summit.”

To streamline these initiatives, the Committee recommended that the Ministry “explore the possibility of appointing a Nodal AI officer solely responsible for all AI matters and coordination for other Ministries/Departments.”

The report reflects Parliament’s push for harnessing AI-driven innovation to improve broadcasting efficiency, multilingual accessibility, and real-time information dissemination across India.

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