Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU)

Context

Nongmaithem Nandakumar Singh of Prasar Bharati won the ABU Broadcast Engineering Excellence Award 2026 for his contribution to broadcast technology and innovation at the 63rd ABU General Assembly held in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

About ABU

1. Nature & Establishment: A non-profit, non-governmental association of media broadcasters, established in 1964.
2. Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
3. Core Objective: Fosters regional broadcasting cooperation across the Asia-Pacific through news sharing, joint productions, and technical support.
4. Global Footprint: Comprises 224 member organisations across 66 countries.
5. Key Activities: News exchange (via Asiavision), capacity building, technical standardisation, and annual ABU Prizes for broadcasting excellence.

Governance Architecture

1. General Assembly:

• Functions as the supreme decision-making body.
• Includes Full, Additional Full, and Associate members meeting annually to set overarching strategies.

2. Administrative Council:

• Acts as the board of directors to manage policies and finances.
• Consists of 18 elected member representatives serving three-year terms and meeting twice a year.

Prasar Bharati: Public Service Broadcaster

1. Institutional Nature: India’s statutory, autonomous public service broadcaster under the MIB (Ministry of Information and Broadcasting).
2. Legal Mandate: Established under the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990; operationalized in 1997.
3. Core Constituents: Comprises AIR (All India Radio / Akashvani) and DD (Doordarshan).
4. WAVES OTT Platform: Official digital streaming service launched on 20 November 2024 at the 55th IFFI (International Film Festival of India) in Goa.
5. Service Portfolio: Provides public service content, 140+ live TV channels, 200+ radio streams, historic media archives, and educational broadcasts via PM eVIDYA channels.

FAQs

Q1. What is the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union?
Ans. A non-profit association of Asia-Pacific broadcasters, established in 1964 and headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Q2. Which body is the ABU’s supreme authority?
Ans. The General Assembly, comprising Full, Additional Full and Associate members.

Q3. Under which law was Prasar Bharati created?
Ans. The Prasar Bharati Act, 1990; it became operational in 1997.