Community radio workshop
Source: The Sangai Express / DIPR

Imphal, September 21 2017: The first Community Radio Awareness Workshop in Manipur was organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, in collaboration with Steering Modern Applications For Real Transformation (SMART) at Classic Grande today .

Diamond Radio, the first community radio of Manipur, was set up with the sole objective of serving the people as an agent to change the economic-cultural barriers within the community .

Diamond Radio 91.2 MHz, started operating near Khongjom police station, under Thoubal district, from January 4, this year .

Governor Dr Najma Heptulla and Deputy Director Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, PD Sharma, graced the inauguration programme of the three day long workshop as distinguished guests .

Lauding the role played by SMART for the welfare of the country since its establishment in 1997, Dr Najma Heptulla said that community radio serves as a powerful tool for community empowerment and social development, especially in regions that are hard to reach, have low levels of development and are low on all social parameters .

"In such scenarios, it works as a low cost medium, employing a simple technology and providing a voice to the voiceless," she said .

She narrated that she was first familiarized with the concept of community radio in Australia and Canada, which have huge land areas and where physical communication is a big problem .

She assured the participants that she will write to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Smriti Irani, to promote community radio in a big way in Manipur .

"Lets see if we can have a community radio at Raj Bhavan so that the public can share their grievances, happiness and experiences with me," she further continued .

In her welcome address, Archana Kapoor, founder of SMART, said that the presence of the Governor is an endorsement of her commitment to empower marginalized and vulnerable women .

This is the first Community Radio Awareness Workshop in Manipur though the Central Government has organised more than 75 workshops across the country .

The purpose of community radio is to provide access, control and ownership of a media platform that enables the people to share, talk and discuss their important issues which are largely ignored by mainstream media .

Giving extra emphasis on the role of community radio in community development and bonding, preservation of local culture and local identity, she explained that the main idea behind the three day workshop is to sensitize the participants to the processes and potential of the community radio .

It will also simplify the process of the application and technology used, she added .

Concerning the North East Region, PD Sharma said that the total Letter of Intent (LOI) issued to set up Community Radio Station is 35, Grant of Permission Agreement (GOPA) between Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the CRSs signed is 8 .

The total CR stations that became operational is 4 while new applications in process is 7 .

Stating that the Ministry has recently introduced grants for content creation by CRSs, he hoped that the participants of the workshop would apply for a CR license very soon .

Pinky Chandran of Radio Active 90.4 MHz, Bengaluru, said that community radio stations are increasingly becoming core linked civic institutions by reflecting and engaging with different communities, stimulating cultural diversity and creating new relations .

Community radio is recognition of the diversity in our country and is a clear reflection of the heterogeneity of communities and the multiplicity of dialects, she added .

Amit Dwivedi, Assistant Project Manager, PMU, GoI, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Khuswinder Singh Bhatia, Manager, Broadcast Engineers Consultants India Ltd (BECIL), gave a detailed presentation on the key areas relating to CR policy guidelines, eligibility criteria and the elements of demystifying the process-application, Lol, SACFA and GoPA, as resource persons .

Fifty participants from all the districts of the State took part in the workshop .

A pamphlet on Diamond Radio 91.2 MHz, containing its mission, theme, CRMC members and innovations in format and a booklet containing the important aspects of setting up a CRS were distributed to each of the participants.

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