AmateurAmateur AA RR SS SocietySociety NewsNews Newsletter of The Amateur Radio Society of India (Member of IARU) October 2012 Issue President’s message From the Editor’s desk Many amateurs – especially the newcomers who joined the elite group of VU amateurs in the past ten years – may not know how it all Dear members from the IARU Region 3 webpage started. I am including “A brief Since writing to you last time, the ARSI http://www.iaru-r3.org/15r3c/15r3c.htm. history of amateur radio in India” in AGM took place at the Bowring Institute in As circulated by the region 3 secretary, the Bangalore on Sunday the 16th September region lost the Chairman of the group of this issue. For me and for many 2012 directors who administer the regions others like me – it is nostalgic. activity. Michael Owen VK3KI passed The activities of the society and its finances Satellite activity has really taken off away suddenly on Saturday the 22nd were discussed by all those present and with the advent of the “Cubesats” – several good suggestions were made on September at his home due a medical with so many of them orbiting the improving the efficiency in working. condition. This is the second time that a serving Chairman of directors has been planet already, and more to come. Dates were finalised for the VHF hill taken away suddenly. Michael who held FitSat is an unique satellite and you topping exercise and also for the national numerous posts in IARU over the years was m a y f i n d t h e i n f o r m a t i o n field day- full details will be available on instrumental on a number of issues facing the ARSI webpage amateur radio being dealt with. interesting. As mentioned last time the Triennial The Seanet convention will also take place Hope you'll find this issue of HRN Conference of IARU Region 3 will be held in Kuala Lumpur between 23rd and 27th th as interesting as ever, in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam from 5 to November 2012. 9th November 2012 and details are available 73 VU2TS Gopal Madhavan VU2GMN Amateur AA RR SS Society News A BRIEF HISTORY OF AMATEUR RADIO IN INDIA he first ever amateur radio operator Radio to broadcast Gandhian protest music general population and prohibitive in India was A.C.Gooptu (callsign and uncensored news; of course, he was equipment costs, the number of licensed T2JK), licensed in 1921. Later that immediately arrested and his equipment amateur radio operators did not increase year, Mukul Bose (2HQ) became the seized. significantly over the next two decades, second ham operator, thereby creating numbering fewer than a thousand by 1970. In August 1942, after Mahatma Gandhi history - as the first ever two-way ham radio launched the Quit India Movement, the [VU2TS was issued in April 1965, and the communication in the country. British began clamping down on the licence number was 350 – Hi] By 1923, there were twenty British hams activities of Indian independence activists CW and AM were the predominant modes operating in India. In 1929, the call sign and censoring the media. at that time. The station equipment was prefix VU came into effect in India, To circumvent media restrictions, Indian mostly valve-based, obtained primarily replacing the earlier three-letter call signs. National Congress activists, led by Usha from Indian army surpluses. There were no I believe the “V” was for the Viceroy - Mehta, contacted Mumbai-based amateur “transceivers” those days, the receivers though some say it was for Queen Victoria. radio operators, "Bob" Tanna (VU2LK) were all WW-II surplus like BC-348, AR- The first ever short-wave entertainment and Printer (VU2FU) to help broadcast 88, HRO and SX-28 - the transmitters and public broadcasting station, messages to the party workers across the home-brewed using the most popular final "VU6AH", was set up in 1935 by E P country. tube those days, the 807. Of course, there Metcalfe, then vice-chancellor of Mysore were a hand-ful of hams who had home- The radio service was called the "Congress University. brewed the entire station too. Even linear Radio", and began broadcasting from 2 amps (813 finals) were home brewed. (Metcalfe was the vice chancellor and September 1942 on 7.12 MHz. The station Professor of Physics, and Principal of could be heard as far as Japanese-occupied During the mid-1960s, the modes of Central College of Bangalore. He served Burma (now Myanmar.) operation saw a major change from AM to from 1930 to 1937. Metcalfe was SSB as the preferred communication mode. By November 1942, Tanna was betrayed by instrumental in establishing a residential By 1980, the number of amateur radio an unknown radio officer and was forced to college for women in Mysore in science operators had risen to 1,500. shut down the station. and arts in the early 1930s. The Maharani's In 1984, when Rajiv Gandhi VU2RG was College, Mysore, and the Intermediate Temporary amateur radio licences were prime minister, the Government waived the College For Women, Bangalore were issued from 1946, after the end of World import duty for wireless equipment. After merged was recommended to be merged by War II. By 1948, there were 50 amateur this, the number of operators rose steadily, the committee headed by Metcalfe.) radio operators in India, although only a and by the year 2000 there were nearly dozen were active. There were fewer than fifty licence holders 10,000 licensed ham operators. As of 2011, in the mid-1930s, most of them British Following India's independence in 1947, there were more than 16,000 ham radio officers in the Indian army. the first amateur radio organization, the operators in India. Amateur Radio Club of India was With the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Amateur radio operators have played a inaugurated on 15 May 1948 at the School the British cancelled the issue of new significant part in disaster management and of Signals at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh. licences. All amateur radio operators were emergencies. sent written orders to surrender their The club headquarters was later moved to In 2005, India became one of few countries transmitting equipment to the police, both New Delhi, where it was renamed the to launch an amateur radio satellite, the for possible use in the war effort and to Amateur Radio Society of India (ARSI) on HAMSAT. The Indian Space Research prevent the clandestine use of the stations 15 May 1954. As India's oldest amateur Organisation (ISRO) launched the micro- by Axis collaborators and spies. radio organization, ARSI became India's satellite as an auxiliary payload on the representative at the International Amateur With the gaining momentum of the Indian PSLV-6. Radio Union. independence movement, ham operator VU2TS – from various sources N.A. Printer (VU2FU) set up the Azad Hind Partly due to low awareness among the Amateur Radio Society News 2 Amateur AA RR SS Society News GWALIOR, MADHYA PRADESH n 2 0 S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 2 , A.S.O.C.Exam was held at OGwalior. WPC Officials from Bhopal took the Exam. 36 Candidates appeared in the Exam. Theeldest candidate was of age of 52 years and the youngest was 14 years. All the candidates enjoyed the exam both theory and practical. Most of the students are from Engineering colleges of different places. One of the candidate came all the way from Chandigarh. Major support given by VU2IG omR.K.Khetan Secretary of Amateur Radio Club Gwalior and President of I.E.T.E. Gwalior sub center, VU2LOL omAniketAshtikar, VU2HRR om Harsh Chaturvedi, om Ashok Agarwal Treasurer of Amateur Radio Club Gwalior. The candidates were trained by VU2JAU JayuS.Bhide. The Exam was organized in coordination of Police Junagadh Range), VU2JGI (Dr JG Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University. I.E.T.E. Gwalior sub center with Amateur Pandya, General Secretary of GIAR, from In the beginning the ham aspirants were Radio Club Gwalior. Ahmedabad ), VU2JF (MrRajenAdiecha, shown a movie on Ham radio prepared by Next batch will start soon under the Rajkot), VU2EXP ( Mr Rajesh Vagadia, VU2JGI. Some basic information was guidance of Jayu VU2JAU. Rajkot) blessed the meeting as invitees. given by VU3SEG. Local senior Hams VU3BUT ( Dr BU BHAVANAGAR, GUJARAT Tekani) and VU2FCY (Mr Rajesh Vyas) The activities of MK Bhavnagar University HAM AWARENESS MEET. The hams also graced the occasion. Amateur Radio Club were presented by and swl's of Bhavnagar, Gujarat met on VU3SEG. The activities at Rajkot were About 150 budding hams and SWLs presented by VU2EXP. 16th September 2012. attended the meet. Senior hams VU2LRE ( MrRadhakrishnan, VU2JGI and VU2LRE answered a large The meeting was arranged at the number of questions from the participants. vice-chairman of GIAR and currently IG Department of Physics, Maharaja Amateur Radio Society News 3 Amateur AA RR SS Society News The participants ranged from school students and teachers, Science- engineering-polytechnic college students and teachers, doctors, persons from various government departments e.g. Electricity supply, LIC, Bank, BSNL, Railways, Police, several retired officers and several individuals. It was decided to have a club station in the university for the benefit of trainees and new hams. GIAR has shown keen interest in helping to UHF antenna developed by VU2JF The very enthusiastic budding hams setup the club station. and several equipment from his who are awaiting the results of the shack were center of attraction for exam conducted on 29th June at Demonstration of Homebrewed rigs the participants.