New Delhi, 20 March: The Government is examining ways to ensure that hoax calls about planting of bombs etc and sensationalizing of such news by the electronic media can be checked.

Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said in reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha recently that the matter was ‘under consideration’.

The question also related to the I and B Ministry planning concrete steps in consultation with the Home Ministry in this regard.

In response to a similar question relating to anti-India messages on television channels asked in the Lok Sabha, the Minister said action is taken whenever any report is received by the Ministry about any anti-India messages.

He stressed that programmes and advertisements telecast on private satellite TV channels are governed by the Programme and Advertising Codes prescribed under the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act 1995 and the rules framed thereunder.

The Act does not provide for pre-censorship of the programmes and advertisements aired on these channels. However, all these channels are required to adhere to the Programme and Advertisement codes which provide for a whole range of parameters to be adhered to for programmes on TV channels.

Rule 6(1) of the Proqramme Code is clear that no programme should be transmitted/retransmitted on any cable service if it contains attack on religions or communities or visuals or words contemptuous of religious groups or which promote communal attitudes.