Mumbai: In a major strategic expansion, Russian President Vladimir Putin officially launched RT India during his visit to New Delhi, marking the global news network’s largest international venture to date. The high-profile inauguration was attended by senior leaders from India and Russia, underscoring Moscow’s deepening geopolitical and media engagement with one of the world’s largest markets.
Veteran Indian legal journalist Ashok Bagriya, former Legal Editor at Hindustan Times and CNN-News18, has been appointed CEO of RT India. Bagriya has been instrumental in building and leading RT’s biggest overseas office, which now features a state-of-the-art broadcast studio, an advanced newsroom, and a team exceeding 100 media professionals. The new entity positions itself as a major platform for delivering global news to Indian audiences.
Bagriya also hosted a closed-door discussion and interview with Herman Gref, CEO and Chairman of Sberbank, on launch day. Gref announced a $100 million investment to scale Sberbank’s India operations—a move that signals strengthened economic cooperation between the two nations.
RT India will air four daily English-language news programmes focusing on India–Russia relations, global developments, and the shifting dynamics of a multipolar world. The network’s entry into India signals Russia’s intent to strengthen ties with strategic partners while offering what it describes as an alternative viewpoint to Western-led narratives.
The launch follows years of restrictions on the state-run broadcaster—formerly Russia Today—in several Western countries after the Ukraine conflict. RT India symbolizes both a strategic pivot and a reassertion of its global ambitions through engagement with the Indian media landscape.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Peskov lauded the milestone, stating, “I would like to sincerely congratulate the magnificent RT team and its viewers for launching your broadcast in India. Sometimes it’s better to lose the right to broadcast in the small democracies, so-called democracies, and launch in the biggest one.”
