[cr-india] Who will they serve?

[Raman Nanda]

Hmm...that's an interesting point made by Vickram..In fact, I have been
wondering, why at all the narrowing down or specific mention of IITs and
Management Institutions among those to be permitted to set up 'Community
Radio'.

Is it that that students pursuing disciplines such as science or management
can be expected to reflect a different attitude towards content and
programming ? Traditionally, those in the stream of arts and social sciences
have tended to be more "rebellious" than those in the science stream -- or
so it would seem to me from my experience in Delhi University. If indeed
that is the case, radio stations in the hands of students of science and
management would be a "safe bet" ?

And sure enough, 50 W transmitters, in appropriate conditions - height of
antenna and nature of terrain --  can send the signal upto 15 miles (24
km)..

The permission for use upto 50 w is good ...though, not good enough; for
such a strength, while enabling you to reach out to a reasonable
geographical stretch, still leaves you "unprotected".. Commercial FM
operations, using far more powerful transmitters, moving close to your
frequency range can block you out. I wonder if adequate safeguards have been
built into the I&B plans for redressal/punitive action. Sure, these details
cannot be expected to be there in the broad guidelines..Is there any
appendix to the guidelines that addresses such issues..?

- Raman

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----- Original Message -----
From: Vickram Crishna <vvcrishna at softhome.net>
To: <cr-india at sarai.net>
Sent: Monday, February 03, 2003 12:24 AM
Subject: [cr-india] Who will they serve?


> >As the IITs move into the second half-century of their existence,
> >the key question is: which constituency do they intend to serve? The
> >IIT system has responded successfully to the changing needs of the
> >global economy, but a relevant question is whether it has even
> >attempted, in recent times, to meet India's changing needs.
> (http://www.flonnet.com/fl2003/stories/20030214007506500.htm) This is
> a quote from the concluding paragraphs of the Frontline article on
> the IITs.
>
> It seems to me equally relevant to ask who India's media serves. Now
> that the airwaves are finally, slowly, being cranked open for the use
> of non-centralized content generation, one must ask, how much, how
> soon, and to what purpose?
>
> I have just discovered that Gyan Vani runs here in Mumbai at 105.7
> MHz. Educational programmes are broadcast in South Mumbai for two
> hours in the evening, using a transmitter from the SNDT University's
> campus in the Churchgate area. Two students from SNDT informed me
> that the University runs a communications course in the (much larger
> and better known) North campus, which is about 20 km away, in Juhu,
> just north of Santacruz, in northwest Mumbai. Students produce some
> content for the transmission as a requirement of their one year
> graduate course, but studying (and mostly living) as they do in north
> Mumbai, have never heard the transmissions.
>
> I also live in northwest Mumbai, and was completely unaware that the
> station had been inaugurated sometime in 2000 or 2001. I have never
> met anyone who has tuned into this station. A recent article in the
> Bombay Times on the opening up of the airwaves for universities
> didn't mention this station either.
>
> I long to know what research MIB did before deciding on the new
> policy. How many people have been listening to Gyan Vani in other
> parts of India? Is IGNOU capable of the kind of audience research (in
> depth and breadth) that AIR still conducts for its own programmes?
> Moreover, will the residential educational institutions be capable of
> this kind of research, enjoined as they are to serve populations
> inside an area exceeding 75 sq km? (I may be wrong here, the original
> news reports referred to a radius of 5 km, but the guidelines talk
> about power not exceeding 50W. Our own experience tells us that in
> flat countryside, a 50W transmitter equipped with a well placed
> efficient antenna ought to reach about 20-25 km at least).
>
> Why, well over 50 years after independence, is our democratic
> government so suspicious of its own people that they can't be trusted
> to manage their own low cost media? Instead, this job will be
> entrusted to hostel residents of elite institutions, who by
> definition do not belong to the area being served by the new radio
> stations.
>
> Yet, note the MIB guidelines:
> >         4.1              The basic objective of the Community Radio
> >broadcasting would be to serve the
> >        cause of the community in the service area of the licensee by
> >involving members of the community       in the broadcast of their
> >programmes.  For this purpose community would mean people living in
> >the coverage zone of the broadcasting service of the licensee.
>
> Two issues I want to raise here:
>
> First, Empowerment. To involve poverty stricken people in the
> production of audio content, one must take the medium to them. This
> is much more practical in India if the station is located within
> walking distance. 20 km is much too far. If such people aren't the
> focus of this governmentally defined community radio, I dearly want
> to know who is.
>
> >       3.2              The Ministry of I&B immediately on receipt of
> >an application will consult the Wireless Advisor in WPC wing of
> >Ministry of Communications and also Prasar Bharati to determine the
> >availability of frequency at the place requested by the applicant.
> >
> >       3.3              The Ministry of  Information & Broadcasting
> >will refer the eligible applicant case to the
> >      Ministries  of Home Affairs, Defence, Human Resources
> >Development and External Affairs and letter of intent and/or license
> >will be issued only after getting the requisite clearances from
> >these Ministries. The licensee will be  required  to sign a licence
> >agreement after allotment of frequency by WPC. The
> >      license agreement shall specify detailed terms and conditions
> >under which the licence is to be operated.
>
> This cumbersome procedure will be unnecessary in most rural areas,
> and the concerned ministries (Home Affairs, Defence and External
> Affairs - what precisely is the role of Human Resources anyway? the
> government has already said quite clearly that they aren't going to
> pay for these stations) should define such geographical areas that
> prequalify for a blanket clearance. As I have shown in a separate
> calculation, there is no shortage of available frequencies for low
> power transmission, and commonsense plus local arbitration (the
> nearest AIR center can easily act as an ombudsman in the unlikely
> case of frequency clashes) will ensure that this problem remains a
> bogey.
>
> Second, Content. One of the major problems with the traditional role
> of radio has been the emphasis on centralized production. Now that it
> is entirely possible to undertake production and broadcasting on very
> small and affordable budgets, there is no reason to continue with a
> policy that creates a disconnect between the audience and the
> production center. We need to petition MIB for extension of the new
> policy to allow village groups, such as self help centers, to run
> their own stations. This ought to bring about a situation where
> community radio does take off as intended, in a big way, leading to
> consequences of information spread far more effectively than the
> centralized route has, in the last half century of independence.
> --
> Vickram
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