Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit to India commenced Thursday evening.
Alongside high-level political meetings and ceremonial engagements, Putin is set to inaugurate the broadcasting of RT India, the newest branch of Russia’s state-funded global media network.
The arrival of RT’s India bureau represents one of the largest overseas expansions of the network since its creation almost two decades ago.
When Putin will launch RT India
The first day of Putin’s trip is expected to include
a private dinner with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During this dinner, the two leaders are likely to review the state of the bilateral relationship, which has remained steady despite global disruptions and sanctions imposed on Russia by several Western countries since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict.
The second day begins with Putin visiting Rajghat to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi. He is then scheduled to receive a ceremonial guard of honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan, continuing the long-standing diplomatic tradition accorded to visiting heads of state.
After official talks with Modi at Hyderabad House, the leaders will travel to Bharat Mandapam, where they will jointly address a gathering of Indian and Russian business leaders.
Putin will later attend a banquet hosted in his honour at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Inserted into this packed diplomatic schedule is the formal start of RT India’s television broadcasting.
According to The Indian Express, the inauguration is planned for Friday from a temporary studio set up inside a New Delhi five-star hotel, although RT India’s core production hub is located in Noida’s Film City.
A short interview with Putin, recorded for the India launch, may also accompany the inaugural programming.
The decision to time the launch with Putin’s visit puts a spotlight on Moscow’s political interest in establishing a sustained media presence in India, a country that has remained open to Russian media at a time when RT’s global operations have faced increasing restrictions elsewhere.
What we know about RT India’s operations
RT India’s Noida studio — described as state-of-the-art — will serve as the network’s main production base in the country.
The organisation has recruited a team of close to 100 people, including correspondents, producers, technicians and camera crews, making it one of RT’s largest international teams outside Russia.
Its programming structure will initially revolve around four English-language news bulletins each day. Unlike existing national TV networks in India, RT India will not focus on domestic political or social issues.
Instead, it will concentrate on international news, particularly geopolitical reporting related to India, Russia and developments across South Asia.
The editorial direction for the India unit has been publicly outlined by RT India’s CEO Ashok Bagaria, who said the purpose of this expansion is to provide an “alternative narrative” to what he describes as the “one-sided narrative being presented by western media outlets.”
Bagaria has pointed out that the network’s role will be to present global events with perspectives that are often missing from Western-dominated news ecosystems.
RT India’s tagline — “Not Anti-Western… Just Not Western” — signals the network’s positioning as a platform offering viewpoints aligned with a multipolar world order rather than mainstream Western interpretations of geopolitical issues.
How RT India was approved
Despite being a new full-scale operation within India, RT did not require a fresh broadcast licence.
Indian officials have clarified that since RT’s content was already available in the country through existing cable and satellite packages, and because the network has a cooperation agreement with Prasar Bharati — India’s state-run public broadcaster — it could begin operations without a separate licensing process.
However, because the launch involves uplinking and downlinking from Indian territory, the network did need approvals from the Ministry of External Affairs, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.
These clearances were obtained following internal assessments and inter-ministerial coordination.
The idea of an India-focused RT channel had been under discussion for some time.
According to The Indian Express, talks gained momentum after a meeting in Moscow between Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during the 26th session of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission.
After the meeting, Manturov’s office issued a statement saying, “Regarding media cooperation, the First Deputy Prime Minister outlined plans for the Russia Today media holding to launch the RT India television channel in New Delhi by the end of the year.”
Manturov characterised this media initiative as a strategic addition to the wider bilateral partnership, stating, “This will allow detailed coverage of events in Russian-Indian relations as well as objectively reflect the growing role of our countries in the modern multipolar world.”
What we know about the origins of RT
RT — originally known as Russia Today — was created in 2005 as a state-funded international news organisation headquartered in Moscow.
It was conceived partly as a public relations project designed to project Russia’s “soft power” and counter what the Kremlin viewed as persistent global stereotypes about the country. The channel initially highlighted Russian culture, history and political perspectives to international audiences.
RT broadcasts in English, Spanish, Arabic and Russian. It previously operated French and German-language channels as well, but these were shut down in 2023, less than a year after the network discontinued RT America’s operations.
The closures followed mounting restrictions in the West, particularly after the European Union banned RT in 2022 shortly after the outbreak of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Although RT describes its mission as providing an “alternative point of view” on global affairs, the network’s editors maintain close ties with the Russian government.
Its long-serving editor-in-chief, Margarita Simonyan, has openly stated that the network’s purpose is “conducting the information war…against the whole Western world.”
Simonyan is reportedly known to have a secure telephone line to the Kremlin, and the organisation’s editorial workflow involves government-appointed editors who oversee story approvals and, when required, request changes to align the network’s reporting with the state’s positions.
RT’s English-language channel was launched on December 10, 2005, broadcasting through three satellites that carried its content across Europe and North America.
Over the years, it has expanded into a network with more than 20 bureaux in 16 countries, although its presence in many regions has contracted since 2022 due to sanctions and regulatory actions.
RT already had a significant footprint in the Indian media landscape. The network’s channels are part of the subscription packages offered by 18 major Indian distribution operators, giving it potential access to an audience of about 675 million viewers.
Since July 2024, RT has also been in a content-sharing arrangement with Doordarshan, the television arm of Prasar Bharati. This cooperation allows for certain RT material to be rebroadcast in India and facilitates exchange of clips, reports and selected content between the two organisations.
For Russia, entering the Indian media space offers access to one of the world’s largest English-speaking news markets.
While the RT India launch is receiving significant media attention, another major Russia-related institutional development is unfolding in India. The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) has opened a representative office in Mumbai — its second overseas office after Beijing, which opened in 2017.
According to the CBR, “It will serve as a link between regulators and financial market participants in Russia and India, creating conditions for mutually-beneficial cooperation between the two countries.”
With inputs from agencies
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