Arun Bhatnagar to head Prasar Bharati

Bhatnagar, who was the Secretary General of the now defunct National Advisory Council, will have a tenure of three years.

"It would be a challenging task," 63-year-old Bhatnagar told PTI soon after assuming office.A believer in team work, he said he will take everybody along as Prasar Bharati Chairman.

Bhatnagar has had a chequered career, having served in key positions like Principal Adviser in Planning Commission, Additional Secretary in the Department of Telecom and Minister (Economics) in the Indian High Commission in London.

The appointment caps a controversy that surrounded Kamath, whose unceremonious exit was ensured by the government by amending the Prasar Bharati Act to reduce the Chairman's tenure from six to three years and fixing the age limit of 70 years.

Eightysix-year-old Kamath was appointed during the NDA rule and was to continue for one more year in office.