MIB releases new RPP Bill-2019

Govt wants to do away with the existing procedure of furnishing of declaration by publishers/ printers before the District Magistrate and its subsequent authentication. Instead the process of title and registration of periodicals including newspapers is proposed to be effected centrally by the Press Registrar General as a simultaneous process. The Bill proposes to do away with the earlier provision under the PRB Act, 1867 of prosecution of publishers. These proposals have been incorporate in the  “Registration of Press and Periodicals (RPP)” Bill, 2019, which will replaced 54 years old  PRB Act,1867. The Draft of the proposed Bill says that the Bill proposes to do away with the earlier provision under the PRB Act, 1867 of prosecution of publishers and   to have a simple system of registration of e-papers. But what will be that simple system, not given. Salient feature of the Draft says that the Bill enables the Central Government and the State Government to frame appropriate rules/ regulations to regulate the criteria/ conditions for issuing Government advertisements in newspapers, accreditation of newspapers and such other facilities for newspapers. Suggestion and comments could be send to the ministry by December 24, 2019.