# Centre says 7,393 URLs disabled in film piracy crackdown 2026-08-05T23:12:25+00:00 | India | Indian Opinion Desk The information and broadcasting ministry told the Lok Sabha that 7,393 URLs, including 1,263 websites and 4,996 Telegram channels, have been disabled under anti-piracy takedown orders. Minister of State L Murugan gave the figures in a written reply to Janasena MP Balashowry Vallabhaneni. The government said the action relies on the Cinematograph (Amendment) Act, 2023, together with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Information Technology Rules, 2021, which let the ministry direct intermediaries to remove infringing content. Section 7(1B)(ii), inserted by the 2023 amendment, allows action against intermediaries hosting pirated content under Section 79(3) of the Information Technology Act. The ministry has authorised its joint secretary for films to issue takedown notices after receiving piracy complaints from copyright holders. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The reply to the Lok Sabha is a count rather than an assessment: 7,393 URLs disabled, among them 1,263 websites and 4,996 Telegram channels, with the legal route set out and no measure of what the blocking did to piracy itself. Hindustan Times carries the ministry's own description of how notices are issued, through the joint secretary who oversees films and through an institutional mechanism for complaints from copyright holders, and nothing from the intermediaries on the receiving end. A further parliamentary question on film piracy is where an updated figure, or a breakdown of the aggregate, would appear. ## Coverage - www.hindustantimes.com Tags: Cinematograph Amendment Act, L. Murugan Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/centre-blocks-4996-telegram-channels-1263-websites-in-anti-piracy-crackdown/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/centre-blocks-4996-telegram-channels-1263-websites-in-anti-piracy-crackdown/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.