Union Budget allocates ₹4,551 crore for I-B Ministry; funds for Prasar Bharati, to support radio movement

The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has been allocated ₹4551.94 crore in the Union Budget, with a substantial amount marked for Prasar Bharati, India’s public broadcaster, besides funds for talent development in animation, visual effects and gaming and supporting the community radio movement.

In the Budget 2026-27 presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Sunday (February 1, 2026), ₹1476.83 crore has been allocated for information and publicity, against the revised estimate of ₹1207.67 crore marked in 2025-26.

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A total amount of ₹4551.94 crore has been allocated for the Information and Broadcasting Ministry as against the revised estimate of ₹6103.02 crore for 2025-26.

The budget for the coming fiscal year allocated ₹2291.88 crore for Prasar Bharati and the amount will be spent for salary and pension among other expenses.

The budget also covers expenditure of the government media units like the Central Bureau of Communication, Press Information Bureau, Publications Division, New Media Wing, Electronic Media Monitoring Centre, among others.

A sum of ₹509.24 crore has been allocated for the Broadcasting Infrastructure Network Development, while the revised estimate for it in 2025-26 was ₹550 crore.

The scheme implemented through Prasar Bharati aims at digitalisation and FMisation of the AIR Network, upgradation of the capacity of the DTH platform to accommodate more channels and enriching viewers’ experience.

An amount of ₹344.55 crore has been allocated for the development communication and dissemination of filmic content, under which the government promotes and preserves Indian cinema by means of film festivals, production of new films and documentaries. The revised estimate in 2025-26 was ₹423.89 crore.

The budget allocated ₹250 crore for the development communication and information dissemination, under which the government generates awareness in citizens about various schemes and programmes to enable the target beneficiaries to avail the benefits of the developmental schemes and elicit people’s participation in process of development. In 2025-27, a sum of ₹196.11 crore was allocated for this.

A sum of ₹8 crore has been allocated for supporting the community radio movement in India under which is a crucial communication tool, particularly in communities where most people neither read nor write. The same amount was allocated in the budget 2025-26.

An allocation of ₹250 crore has been made for talent development in animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) sector, under which the government promotes India and its youth as leaders in content creation by setting up AVGC content creator labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges.

The budget allocated ₹89.97 crore for Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, ₹80 crore for the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata, ₹83 crore for Indian Institute of Mass Communication, ₹11.22 crore for Press Council of India and ₹35 crore for National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).

An amount of ₹111.22 crore has also been allocated for the Northeastern areas for the social services sector.