Page 37 - NIS English December1-15

WHAT ARE COMMUNITY RADIO STATIONS?

Community Radio Stations (CRS) NEED FOR COMMUNITY RADIO STATIONS
are small (low power) FM radio Even as All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan were
stations with a coverage area of serving rural areas, there were still several remote
around 10-15 kilometer radius, quarters where there was no medium for the Government
depending on the geography of to reach out to people through dialogue. To ensure that
the area. CRS play a significant
role in dissemination of the Government schemes are reaching the masses,
agriculture-related information, awareness is important and in that case role of Community
Government schemes for Radio stations become crucial. Use of the local dialect
people’s welfare and weather makes it even more popular among the community.
forecast etc. They are expected
to produce at least 50 per cent of COMMUNITY RADIOS DURING COVID-19
their programmes locally in the From creating awareness about Coronavirus infection to
local languages or dialects. The precautions to be taken, community radios have been
functional CRS are broadcasting of immense help. They also disseminate information
in various languages including about availability of masks, sanitisers or other important
local dialects giving marginalised items in the local market. The medium also helped in
communities, a platform to busting several myths regarding the pandemic. In a
make their voice heard and an nutshell, community radio helped the Government in
opportunity to express their views. reaching out to even more people during pandemic.

HOW TO APPLY: The Ministry of Eligibility to set up community radio stations
Information and Broadcasting (MoIB) Any non-profit organisation or a
is the nodal agency for dealing with the community-based organisation
community radio licensing process, functional for three or more years is
which is a 12-step procedure. The eligible to apply for a Community Radio
first step of procedure involves Station. Educational institutes, krishi
submission of the application. The vigyan kendras, civil society, voluntary
application form is available free of organisations, registered societies,
cost on the website www.mib.nic. autonomous bodies and public trusts registered under Societies
in. Applicants are encouraged to Registration Act or any such relevant act are eligible for having a
submit the application online on www. community radio. They need to have a transmitter, feeder cable
cronlineindia.net. The applicants can and antenna, instruments for recording and playback and other
also obtain the CR Application Form studio needs, studio mixer and monitor. This can cost somewhere
from the CRFC website www.crfc.in. between Rs 6 Lakh to Rs 27 Lakh or more.

the remotest areas and can have a dialogue with was made till 2014. Country’s first community
the people there. He said that community radio is radio was established in Annamalai University.
a community in itself and it is an agent of change. According to Sanjay Dwivedi, Director General
In the first week of November, Letter of of Indian Institute of Mass Communication
Intent (LOI) was issued to 738 community radio (IIMC), the community radios are unifying India.
stations to empower communities. Grant of Saurabh Mishra, Deputy Director in Education
Permission Agreements (GOPA) were issued Ministry who has also done PhD on the impact
to 373 community radio stations. Even though of community radios, said in tribal areas of
the Government had issued guidelines for Madhya Pradesh, eight community radios were
community radios in 2004-05, not much progress established in 2011.

New India Samachar 35