<span style="color: #222222;">The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has assured to boost the film industry. Interacting with the representatives of various associations and stakeholders of film industry via video conference in Mumbai, I and B Secretary Apurva Chandra said the government wishes to increase the number  of cinema halls in the country and is also planning to set up more film institutes on a public-private partnership model.<br />''</span><br />''Speaking about the Finance Minister's announcement of setting up an Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comic Promotion Task Force, Mr. Chandra said the Task Force is likely to be set up by this month-end as its 'Terms of Reference' are just being finalised. He said funding will not be an issue as the government wants to utilize the full potential of this sunrise sector.<br />''<br />''During the meeting, the Secretary also emphasised on the need to expand the scope of participation of Indian films in international film festivals. He said, showcasing Indian movies at the world stage will encourage foreign filmmakers to use Indian facilities for their film production.<br />''<br />''Expressing happiness that the film industry is satisfied with the streamlining of the film certification processes, Mr. Chandra said certain amendments are in the pipeline to combat piracy. He said age based categorisation of film certification, U/A 7, U/A 13 and U/A 16 is also under consideration.<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">On the merger of five film media units namely Films Division, Directorate of Film Festivals, National Film Archives of India and Children's Film Society, India with the National Film Development Corporation, Mr. Chandra clarified that the basic objective is to strengthen NFDC so that they can rotate staff and deliver on the responsibilities assigned to them. Throwing some more light on the merger, Additional Secretary, I and B Ministry, Neerja Shekhar said that all activities will continue to take place without any overlap. She said NFDC has been critical in producing films marking the 75th anniversary of India's independence, as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.</span><br />