According to an industry expert, who wished to remain anonymous, this helps BARC detect whether data is being padded by channels. “Suppose you’re a panel home and you’re a sports buff and an English movie buff but one day suddenly you start watching a Bangla channel. The system immediately sends out a red flag and there’s a vigilance team in place which probes into it,” he explained. If there’s a reasonable justification for the change in viewership trends – suppose a relative from Bengal is visiting – the matter is dropped; otherwise, further cross-checking is done and channels are given an opportunity to explain themselves, he added. In this case, there were also complaints from rival channels, which prompted an enquiry. Only after the investigation is complete a decision is taken, he said, clarifying that such a step is never a “knee-jerk reaction”.