MUMBAI: The Indian Government has decided to ease the annual renewal norms for TV channels, Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu has said. About 963 channels, including teleports, are going to be benefitted by this decision.

The government is committed to the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to promote ease of doing business, PTI. reported. “As part of the government’s initiative of ease of doing business, the Ministry has completely done away with the process of obtaining an annual renewal for TV channels in the current form,” he said while addressing the Economic Editors’ Conference in New Delhi.

The government has decided to ease the “annual renewal” norms for TV channels and existing broadcasters can continue operations by simply paying annual permission fee 60 days before the due date, Naidu said on Friday.

Naidu said that “broadcasters who have been given the permission for uplinking or downlinking can continue their operations by simply paying the annual permission fee which by itself will be treated as permission for continuation of a channel for a further period of one year.”

Naidu hailed Modi's move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes saying that it was being appreciated by all excepted a few with "vested" interests. Terming the move as an "historic" step, Naidu said that it was fine for TV channels to show the inconvenience caused to the people after the announcement was made but was not fair to "dwell" on it.