Prasar Bharati went back on word to pay NFDC: Sources

NEW DELHI: Challenging the public broadcaster's claims that it had declined to pay the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) for hiring a private company to cover the opening and closing ceremonies of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) 2017, government sources have said the Prasar Bharati (PB) Board had "in principle" agreed to pay NFDC, but backed out later. Sources also said they would work out a way to settle NFDC's outstanding bills.
During its last board meeting on February 15, the PB Board had declined to settle NFDC's demand for dues from Doordarshan. NFDC had asked DD to settle a bill of Rs 2.92 crore for hiring a private firm to do the live coverage of IFFI. PB declined, saying DD was "fully qualified" to do the job on its own. Government sources who spoke on condition of anonymity said that PB's stand was an afterthought as it had promised to pay the private firm.

Sources said senior officials had during an October 25 meeting between NFDC and PB, held detailed discussions about IFFI coverage and laid emphasis on the need for organising an event with high impact. "At the end of the October 25 meeting, an in principle approval was accorded by the board for commissioning the episodes and marketing the Film Festival property to garner high ratings and revenue," the source said. The matter came up for discussion once again during the PB Board meeting on February 15, where ministry nominee Ali Rizvi reiterated the demand for payment of outstanding dues. In what is believed to have been an acrimonious meeting, the PB board declined the request once again.

The non-payment of dues, though is just one part of a loud and bitter war of words that has started between I&B ministry and PB chairman Surya Prakash, each accusing the other of misconduct. While Prakash alleged that the ministry has undermined PB's autonomy and claimed the ministry did not release salaries of 29,000 PB employees for the months of January and February, the ministry claimed that this was nothing but a "deliberate, sinister, motivated campaign" launched against it as "retaliation."

The I&B ministry, in its clarification, also alleged PB has not signed an MoU with the ministry to ensure "fiscal prudence and accountability."

PB CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati confirmed that the public broadcaster had released Rs 208 crore towards salaries on February 28 from the internal and extra budgetary resources reserves or PB's contingency funds: confirmation that the ministry has not released the monthly grant-in-aid to PB.