Prasar Bharati: Programme, demand mismatch

Courtesy:  www.livemint.com

FIRST PUBLISHED: TUE, AUG 12 2014. 12 03 AM IST

There is technological and programming mismatch between viewers' needs and Doordarshan's output.

The Modi government is going to examine the continuing relevance of Prasar Bharati, the country's public service broadcaster, according to people in the new administration. Perhaps the question to ask is whether public broadcasting is still relevant in India. 

The country is saturated with television but has a poor human development index ranking. It spends Rs.3,600 crore a year on the public broadcaster, but the poorest segments of its population list several unmet information needs. Agriculture, health and education-based programming, for instance, are quantitatively low in Doordarshan's priorities, but ranked high among expressed viewership needs. Employment enabling programming, which is mentioned frequently as a felt need, does not figure in the content break-up. Can the right kind of programming on the right delivery platforms make a difference to India's human development index ranking? Could the decades of investment in public television be made to deliver more effectively? What is the research showing? 

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