22 Mass Communication THE Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, through the mass communication media consisting of radio, television, films, press and print publications, advertising and traditional modes of communication such as dance and drama, plays an effective role in helping people to have access to free flow of information. The Ministry is involved in catering to the entertainment needs of various age groups and focusing attention of the people on issues of national integrity, environmental protection, health care and family welfare, eradication of illiteracy and issues relating to women, children, minority and other disadvantaged sections of the society. The Ministry is divided into four wings i.e., the Information Wing, the Broadcasting Wing, the Films Wing and the Integrated Finance Wing. The Ministry functions through its 21 media units/ attached and subordinate offices, autonomous bodies and PSUs. The Information Wing handles policy matters of the print and press media and publicity requirements of the Government. This Wing also looks after the general administration of the Ministry. The Broadcasting Wing handles matters relating to the electronic media and the regulation of the content of private TV channels as well as the programme matters of All India Radio and Doordarshan and operation of cable television and community radio, etc. Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC), which is a subordinate office, functions under the administrative control of this Division. The Film Wing handles matters relating to the film sector. It is involved in the production and distribution of documentary films, development and promotional activities relating to the film industry including training, organization of film festivals, import and export regulations, etc. The Integrated Finance Wing looks after the financial aspects of the Ministry. Prasar Bharati www.prasarbharati.gov.in Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) is the public service broadcaster in the country, with Akashvani (All India Radio) and Doordarshan as its two constituents. It came into existence on November 23, 1997, with a mandate to organize and conduct public broadcasting services to inform, educate and entertain the public and to ensure a balanced development of broadcasting on radio and television. Objectives The major objectives of the Prasar Bharati Corporation as laid out in the Prasar Bharati Act, 1990 are as follows : (i) to uphold the unity and integrity of the country and the values enshrined in the Constitution; (ii) to promote national integration; (iii) to safeguard citizen’s rights to be informed on all matters of public interest and presenting a fair and balanced flow of information; (iv) to pay special attention to the fields of education and spread of literacy, agriculture, rural development, environment, health and family welfare and science and technology; (v) to create awareness about women’s issues and to take special steps to protect the interests of children, the aged and other vulnerable sections of the society; (vi) to provide adequate coverage to the diverse cultures, sports and games and youth affairs; (vii) to promote social justice, safeguard the rights of working classes, minorities and tribal communities; and (viii) to promote research and expand broadcasting facilities and development in broadcast technology. Prasar Bharati Board The Corporation, is governed by the Prasar Bharati Board, which comprises a Chairman, an Executive Member (also known as Chief Executive Officer), a Member (Finance), a Member (Personnel), six part-time Members, a representative of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and Directors General of All India Radio and Doordarshan as ex-officio Members. The Chairman is a part-time member with a three year tenure subject to an age limit of seventy years. The Executive Member is a whole time member with a five-year tenure subject to an age limit of sixty five years. The Member (Finance) and the Member (Personnel) are whole time members also with a six-year tenure, subject to the age limit of 62 years. The Prasar Bharati Board meets from time to time and deliberates on important policy issues and gives directions to the executive to implement policy guidelines. All India Radio www.allindiaradio.gov.in After the invention of Radio and the starting of broadcasting in the western countries, broadcasting by private Radio Clubs started in a few cities in India like Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. The first radio programme was broadcast by the Radio Club of Bombay in June, 1923. It was followed by the setting up of a Broadcasting Service that began broadcasting on July 23, 1927 on an experimental basis at Mumbai and Kolkata simultaneously under an agreement between the Government of India and a private company called the Indian Broadcasting Company Ltd. When this company went into liquidation in 1930, Indian State Broadcasting Service under the Department of “Controller of Broadcasts” was constituted and in 1935 Lionel Fielden was appointed the Controller of Broadcasting in India. The Indian State Broadcasting Service was renamed as All India Radio in January 1936. It remained under Department of Communication, Department of I&B, Department of Information and Arts for periods ranging from 1 to 4 years and finally has been under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. At the time of partition, India had six radio stations (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Tiruchirapalli and Lucknow) and three radio stations went to Pakistan (Lahore, Peshawar and Dacca, now in Bangladesh). A 1,000 kw super power medium wave transmitter each was commissioned at Mogra near Kolkata in 1969 and at Rajkot in 1971. Four 500 kw super power short wave transmitters were inaugurated at Bangalore in 1994. This made it one of the biggest transmitting centres in the world. The first ever FM service was started in Madras on July 23, 1977. All AIR stations were provided with 5 channel receiver terminals in 1985. Multi-track recording studio was commissioned at Mumbai in 1994 and in Chennai in 1995. Infrastructure All India Radio came to be known as Akashvani from 1957. AIR took over radio stations being run by native states since British days such as Akashvani Mysore, Hyderabad Radio, and Radio Kashmir, etc. From a meagre 18 transmitters in 1947 AIR acquired 46 by the end of First Plan, 59 by the end of Second Plan, 110 by the end of Third Plan and 433 by the end of 11th Plan and hence forth by March- 2017 total number of transmitters went up to 612, consisting of 143 mw, 48 SW and 421 FM transmitters. The number of radio stations went up from six in 1947 to 420 by March, 2017. Software AIR has evolved, over the years, a three-tier system of broadcasting namely national, regional, and local. It caters to the information, education, and entertainment needs of the audience through its stations in this country of continental dimension with plural society. They provide news, music, spoken words, and other programmes in 23 languages and 176 dialects to almost the entire population of the country which crossed 1 billion mark recently. The entertainment channel of AIR named Vividh Bharati was started on October 3, 1957 and since November 1, 1967, commercials were aired on this channel. The first Radio Sangeet Sammelan was organised in 1954, which has since become annual feature. Akashvani Annual Awards to promote excellence in Programme, Engineering, News and Audience Research were instituted in 1974. Doordarshan was separated from AIR on April 1, 1976. The first broadcast by political parties before Elections went on the air in 1977 from different stations of AIR. The North Eastern Service was commissioned on January 3, 1990 at Shillong in the campus of AIR, Shillong. The public service broadcasting initially in the evening transmission for about five and a half hour daily has since been extended to three transmissions. The programmes are beamed through a 50 kw SW transmitter in Hindi and English besides music programmes in different languages/ dialects of all the states of the North East. Phone-in-Programmes were introduced. Channels and Programmes The phenomenal growth achieved by All India Radio through eight decades has made it one of the largest media organisations in the world. Now, it has 420 stations and 612 transmitters. To serve the communication needs of the plural society that India is, the network expanded gradually imbibing new technologies and programme production techniques. All India Radio’s services are being digitalized. Objectives To provide information, education and entertainment, for promoting the welfare and happiness of the masses (Bahujana Hitaya Bahujana Sukhaya), All India Radio strives :- (a) to uphold the unity of the country and the democratic values enshrined in the constitution. (b) to present a fair and balanced flow of information of national, regional, local and international interest, including contrasting views, without advocating any opinion or ideology of its own. (c) to produce and transmit varied programmes designed to awaken, inform, enlighten, educate, entertain, and enrich all sections of the people; (d) to produce and transmit programmes relating to developmental activities in all their facets including extension work in agriculture, education, health and family welfare and science and technology; (e) to serve the rural, illiterate and under-privileged population, keeping in the mind the special needs and interest of the young, social and cultural minorities, the tribal population and those residing in border regions, backward or remote areas; (f) to serve the rural population, minority communities, women, children, illiterate as well as other weaker and vulnerable sections of the society; and (g) to promote national integration. Three-Tier Broadcasting The three-tier system of broadcasting of AIR caters to the information, education, and entertainment needs of the audiences through its stations in this country of continental dimension and with a plural society. They provide news, music, spoken word and other programmes to almost the entire population of the country, 121.0 crore as per the 2011 census.