Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati’s tenure ends
The Hindu
He was appointed to the post in June 2017
The five-year tenure of Prasar Bharati Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shashi Shekhar Vempati came to an end on Wednesday.
It is likely that additional charge of the office will be given to a Member of the Prasar Bharati Board till a regular appointment to the post is made, said an official.
Mr. Vempati was appointed as the Prasar Bharati CEO in June 2017, after a three-member committee headed by the then Vice-President recommended his name, in accordance with the Prasar Bharati Act. An alumnus of IIT-Bombay, he was the youngest and first non-bureaucrat to hold the public office since its creation in 1997. He also held additional charge as CEO of Rajya Sabha from August 2017 to May 2019.
Following a long stint with Infosys Technologies, Mr. Vempati managed a digital news media start-up, Niti Digital, before he took over as the Prasar Bharati CEO. During his tenure, the public broadcaster closed financial year 2021-2022 with a revenue growth of about 13% from its commercial operations. He attributed it to the increase in the DD FreeDish revenue and a strong post-COVID-19 recovery in radio advertising revenues.
“Also, for the first time, our tower rental revenues touched ₹100 crore, which also contributed to the growth. Digital, while being a small source of revenue relatively, is growing at 30%,” he had told The Hindu. On the digital front too, several key decisions were taken during his tenure.