The government hopes to put in place the guidelines for foreign direct investment in in news and current affairs print media and other publications before the Winter session of Parliament beginning mid-November.

Four months after the Cabinet gave its nod to allow direct foreign holdings in the sensitive sector, the government is in the process of finalising guidelines separately for current affairs print media and non-news publications, which includes medical and technical journals.

Information and broadcasting ministry sources say there is no question of increasing the 26 per cent cap on FDI in the news sector, a controversial issue which had met with strong opposition from several political parties and a section of the media when the Cabinet cleared it in June.

Finalising the guidelines for FDI in this sector may take longer because of more safeguards and complications, the sources added.

An inter-ministerial committee is proposed to be set up to examine the nature and categorisation of non-news and non-current affairs publications, in which the foreign holding cap is 74 per cent as against 26 per cent in the news sector.

PTI