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NEW
DELHI: Prasar Bharati has recovered a sum of Rs 5.835 million
from the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) paid
for repeat telecasts of feature films between December 2003
and May 2006.
The
amount was recovered in March 2007 by making deductions from
the royalty payable to NFDC when audit pointed out the error
in February 2007. According to a report of the Comptroller
and Auditor General (CAG), the error occurred because Doordarshan
has not been maintaining film-wise data of telecast of films.
The royalty fee payable for the first telecast of films less
than seven years old was Rs 300,000 and Rs 1,20,000 for older
films according to an MoU between NFDC and Doordarshan.
Payment
for telecast on more than one occasion during three years
from the first telecast was regulated on the sliding scale
of 50 and 25 per cent for the second and third repeat telecasts,
respectively. No payment was to be made for the fourth or
more telecasts over the period of three years from the date
of the first telecast.
CAG has, therefore, asked Prasar Bharati to review the payments
made for all films telecast over the last five years to establish
that no excess payment has been made, strengthen the internal
control system, and determine accountability for negligence.
The CAG report has also pointed out that though the matter
was referred to the I&B ministry in June last year, no
reply had been received by November 2007.
This
is not the first time that Prasar Bharati and Doordarshan
have been charged by CAG with making errors in payment of
royalty to NFDC for telecast of feature films. In the report
presented last year, CAG had referred to a revenue loss of
Rs 71.3 million to Prasar Bharati because of faulty practices
with regard to acquisition of feature films for the national
network of Doordarshan.
The public broadcaster lost revenue of Rs 66.8 million in
2004-05 as it had to acquire feature films on royalty basis
from the NFDC because of its failure to enter into a formal
agreement, and paid an excess amount of Rs 4.5 million over
the prescribed rates as royalty to rights holders of five
prominent Bollywood films telecast in late 2004, according
to CAG.
CAG also gave the record of five other feature films made
between 1997 and 2004 and telecast at around the same time
of the year which were paid the prescribed royalty of Rs 4.7
million.
Furthermore, the report has noted that while the five films
which were paid higher royalty had earned revenue of Rs 38.39
million whereas the other films listed by it earned Rs 39.1
million.
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