Coimbatore: The Tamil Nadu Film Exhibitors Association has placed five demands before the Government to ensure the survival of rural cinema theatres, which are on the verge of closure. In a memorandum, the association vice-president, R. Narayanasamy Naidu, said that while the Government was paying advertisement charges to the print and electronic media, it was charging the theatres for screening news reels, which were made mandatory.

Rural cinemas were finding it difficult to pay these charges. Their licences were being held back.

Maharashtra has already issued orders withdrawing this practice of compulsory screening of newsreels, it pointed out and demanded the State to follow suit. To prevent closure of rural cinemas, the association pleaded for extending the Re. 1 subsidy a unit of electricity for theatres that consumed less than 1,200 units.

At present renewal of licence for permanent and semi-permanent cinemas were being done once in three years for theatres that were less than 20 years old and once in a year for theatres which were more than 20 years old.

Instead, the association suggested that the licences could be renewed once in five years for cinema houses that are less than 50 years old and once in three years for theatres that were more than 50 years old. The licence of touring talkies could be extended from five years to six years with a clause for renewal once in three years and with a provision for another renewal after three years.

At the same time to ensure the safety of filmgoers, the Government could insist on officers inspecting the theatres once in a year to point out deficiencies.

A uniform tax of 10 per cent as entertainment tax should be levied even for the dubbed films on a par with Tamil films.

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