It’s peak afternoon in Noida. A kilometre from the expressway, two excavators are digging earth and unloading it on nearby trucks. The work proceeds at a sultry pace. Sector 158 is mostly barren, except for a school and a robotics company in the vicinity. Soon, a third structure will come up in this expanse of empty, government-acquired plots: the studios of Arnab Goswami’s Republic Media Network.
The network, which runs the English news channel Republic TV, Hindi news channel Republic Bharat and Bengali news channel Republic Bangla, is headquartered in Mumbai’s Lower Parel. Republic Bharat operates out of a studio in Noida’s Film City, home to many other news broadcasters.
But the newly acquired plot stands 20 km from Film City. It measures 18,821 sq metres or over four and a half acres. The work began after a puja in September, which Goswami attended. Those in the know say some studio equipment from Mumbai has already been moved to the Film City office.
This story was originally published in newslaundry.com. Read the full story here