| MUMBAI:
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has permitted People’s Association
for Rural Development (PARD), a Tamil Nadu registered society, for establishing,
maintaining and operating a community radio station (CRS) at T Pudupatty, Thirumangalam
Taluk, Madurai District, Tamil Nadu. The
Letter of Intent had been issued to the society after recommendations of inter
ministerial committee and seeking requisite clearances from various ministries.
The CRS is expected to be operational within three months as per the agreement.
PARD
had conducted a survey across 59 villages in four taluks of T Pudupatty about
the need for setting up CRS and the requirements of targeted population.
It was noted
that out of 708 respondents, 83.05 per cent of the population did not receive
any newspaper. 61 per cent of the respondents believe that radio can help them
solve the major problems they are facing. 66.7 per cent radio owners tuned to
FM Channels. This pointed to the need of a Community Radio which employs local
language and dialect to attract a new generation of listeners if a radio revival
is to be achieved. Besides the language and content, people feel that if they
have the ownership of media, the possibility of the radio revival will increase
enormously.
PARD’s
main objective is to impart education in health, social awareness
and agriculture; promote functional education, legal education
and cultural development of the villages; environment and
rural sanitation to the rural people; and to undertake constructive
activities for the welfare of socially and economically backward
women, children and family on voluntary self help and democratic
basis.
Also
Read:
Maharashtra
to have one more community radio station
Community
radio station to come up in Madhya Pradesh
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