Those were the days ... A campaign against unlicensed radio set owners
"Gyan Vani", an educational radio network run by Indira Gandhi Open University, is now setting up stations in many parts of the country. Licensing of community radio stations is where India lags behind other countries in the developed and developing world, and there is no indication that this policy will change in the near future. It would involve giving frequencies to communities to run their own radio stations.
Meanwhile, organisations working with communities are taking time bands on AIR's local radio stations to innovate development programmes for listeners in their area of operation.
The marriage of radio and internet is yielding some dividends. BBC World Service Radio's online usage — both text and audio — has gone up to record levels, increasing well above comparable internet growth rates. It recently won a Webby for being the best radio site in the world. Its Hindi website, like the other language sites it runs, is now updated around the clock.
In contrast, log in to the AIR website (http://air.kode.net) on August 17, and the live news strip you get pertains to August 6. Click on live audio, and it says the live audio service is withdrawn temporarily. Click on important broadcasts, and you'll be offered the President and Prime Minister's Independence Day broadcasts for the year 2001.
The most recent offering for the year 2002 is the President's Eve of Republic Day address. Obviously, at AIR they are not betting on the Internet to expand their reach.
"Gyan Vani", an educational radio network run by Indira Gandhi Open University, is now setting up stations in many parts of the country. Licensing of community radio stations is where India lags behind other countries in the developed and developing world, and there is no indication that this policy will change in the near future. It would involve giving frequencies to communities to run their own radio stations.
Meanwhile, organisations working with communities are taking time bands on AIR's local radio stations to innovate development programmes for listeners in their area of operation.
The marriage of radio and internet is yielding some dividends. BBC World Service Radio's online usage — both text and audio — has gone up to record levels, increasing well above comparable internet growth rates. It recently won a Webby for being the best radio site in the world. Its Hindi website, like the other language sites it runs, is now updated around the clock.
In contrast, log in to the AIR website (http://air.kode.net) on August 17, and the live news strip you get pertains to August 6. Click on live audio, and it says the live audio service is withdrawn temporarily. Click on important broadcasts, and you'll be offered the President and Prime Minister's Independence Day broadcasts for the year 2001.
The most recent offering for the year 2002 is the President's Eve of Republic Day address. Obviously, at AIR they are not betting on the Internet to expand their reach.