Budget 2026–27: I&B Ministry gets Rs 4,551.94 crore, focus on Prasar Bharati
The Union Budget 2026–27 has allocated Rs 4,551.94 crore to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, with major funding for Prasar Bharati, media infrastructure, AVGC talent development and community radio. The allocation is lower than last year’s revised estimate.
New Delhi: The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has been allocated Rs 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, Rs 1476.83 crore has been allocated for information and publicity, against the revised estimate of Rs 1207.67 crore marked in 2025-26.
A total amount of Rs 4551.94 crore has been allocated for the Information and Broadcasting Ministry as against the revised estimate of Rs 6103.02 crore for 2025-26.
The budget for the coming fiscal year allocated Rs 2291.88 crore for Prasar Bharati and the amount will be spent on 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 Rs 509.24 crore has been allocated for the Broadcasting Infrastructure Network Development, while the revised estimate for it in 2025-26 was Rs 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 Rs 344.55 crore has been allocated for the development of communication and dissemination of filmic ontent, 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 Rs 423.89 crore.
The budget allocated Rs 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 Rs 196.11 crore was allocated for this.
A sum of Rs 8 crore has been allocated for supporting the community radio movement in India, 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 Rs 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 Rs 89.97 crore for Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, Rs 80 crore for the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata, Rs 83 crore for Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Rs 11.22 crore for Press Council of India and Rs 35 crore for National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).
An amount of Rs 111.22 crore has also been allocated for the Northeastern areas for the social services sector.
