Friday, January 25, 2008

All India Radio Special Broadcast 25-29 January 2008

All India Radio Special Broadcast 25-29 January 2008
Sat, 19 Jan 2008

Alokesh Gupta,New Delhi All India Radio will broadcast following special programmes in connection with the Republic Day Celebrations.
25 Jan 2008 (Fri) - 1330 UTC onwards : President's Address to the Nation. 9835, 9575, 5015, 6030, 6085
26 Jan 2008 (Sat) - 0350 UTC onwards : Running commentary on the Republic Day Parade and Cultural Pageant from Rajpath Hindi Commentary : 9595, 11620, 15020 English Commentary :6085, 9950, 11585,15050
29 Jan 2008 (Tues) - 1630-1700 UTC Radio Report on 'Beating Retreat' ceremony. 7140, 9835, 9575, 6085
Note : 9950 via Aligarh, 15050 via B'lore, all other freq's via Delhi.
Consequent to the above special broadcasts there will be changes/cancellation in the schedule of National bulletins in Regional languages, Hindi/English News & Current Affairas programmes.
All stations of AIR will relay at least one of these programs.

Reception reports to: spectrum-manager@air.org.in
Or can be submitted online at : http://www.allindiaradio.gov.in/recepfdk.html

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

World Radio TV Handbook - WRTH 2008



WRTH2008Publisher: Nicholas Hardyman

No of pages:
672

Publisher: WRTH Publications Limited, PO Box 290, Oxford, OX2 7FT, United Kingdom

Order Fax: +44 (0)1865 514405.

Web (secure online ordering):
http://www.wrth.com/

E-mail:
sales@wrth.com

Cover price: £23.00 including airmail postage worldwide.

ISBN: 978-0-9555481-0-9



Published in the USA by Watson-Guptill Publications, 770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003-9595, USA

Distributed in Germany by Gert Wohlfarth GmbH. E-mail: info at wohlfarth.de


The World Radio TV Handbook (WRTH), subtitled the Directory of Global Broadcasting, published its 2008 edition in December 2007. There is a very small decrease (16) in the total number of pages, probably reflecting cuts in the output of many international broadcasters in the past year. This is mentioned in the editorial, where Publisher Nicholas Hardyman says that "any country wishing to broadcast its world view reliably can only do so by retaining an effective and up-to-date HF broadcasting capability."



But the WRTH is not stuck in a timewarp. Full use is made of a website to deliver updates to the printed book, and the editorial mentions that it is hoped to launch a new section called "FMXtra" in 2008, that will provide information on "the large number of low-power FM stations for which there is no room in the printed book." This will be a welcome addition, though the scale of such an effort will be daunting, given the thousands of stations involved.



Two radio stations are the subject of special feature articles. One is Falklands Radio and the other, which we were delighted to see, is Radio Voice of the People, which broadcasts to Zimbabwe via the Radio Netherlands Worldwide Madagascar relay station. Both these station profiles are illustrated with colour photos.



Receiver reviews

Very few new shortwave receivers of any quality are being produced at the moment, and this is reflected by the fact that four pages of the review section are devoted to a restrospective look at a classic receiver, the Racal RA1792. But DRM-capable receivers such as the Morphy Richards 27024 and the Himalaya DRM 2009 are also featured. Digital Update takes a look at digital radio and TV developments during 2007. The conclusion drawn by the WRTH is that "the advance of digital techniques continues apace, especially in television, but it will be some time before the picture becomes clearer."



The receiver reviews in WRTH are selective rather than comprehensive. For a detailed survey of analogue receivers currently available in the shops, the casual shortwave listener needs to turn to other sources, such as Passport to World Band Radio.



The reference sections

The listings of radio and TV stations around the world have always been the raison d'être of WRTH and, with the exception of international broadcasts, these continue to increase as the years go by. The WRTH, while widely used by international broadcasting professionals, was originally created with the listener primarily in mind. Consequently the US listings, for example, contain only the higher powered AM stations likely to be heard well beyond their official coverage area, and FM stations serving major metropolitan areas. But the FM listings have limited usefulness, as they do not give any details of format, or even how to contact the station. This will hopefully be rectified when the new FMXtra section is launched on the website.



Essentially, the structure of the book remains as it has always been: stations are listed by country and frequency. There are separate country listings for domestic and international broadcasting services. There is also a separate section listing clandestine and other target broadcasts. The frequency lists are divided into five separate mediumwave tables covering different geographical regions, and a single shortwave list in frequency order. There are also handy lists of international broadcasts in English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish in time order. All times in the WRTH are in UTC.



User-generated content

The radio listings in the WRTH are generally of a very high standard, and the list of contributors reads like a who's who of international radio listening. In a sense, the WRTH relies to a considerable extent on user-generated content, as these contributors are also among the book's most active users. This contrasts with the approach taken by Passport to World Band Radio which relies more on a combination of official schedules and intensive monitoring by a small team of experienced editors.



The shortwave frequency information is as up-to-date as it could possibly be, bearing in mind the very short time between the start of the winter schedules and the print deadline of the book. The copy deadline for the schedules of the international broadcasters was 10 November 2007.



TV listings remain the weakest link

As far as content is concerned, the radio listings are excellent, but the TV section of WRTH remains its weakest link due to the limited space available. A note at the top of the TV section says that "it's hoped to make more comprehensive information available in the future, including on the WRTH website". This seems like a good idea, but the same comment appeared in last year's edition, and not much has changed. The criteria for what to include in the TV section seem random at best. The introduction says "Space is limited in this section and transmitter details are include where space permits; local stations are included if the number does not exceed the space limitation."



As it stands, the TV section occupies 40 pages, but its usefulness to either TV DXers or professionals is questionable. It appears that the WRTH is produced by dedicated radio enthusiasts with little or no interest in TV, and the section is retained purely to justify the book's title. Clearly, someone with a real interest in TV is needed to clean up this section, at the very least to establish logical criteria for what to include. Forty pages of information on world TV could still be very useful if put together by someone who understands what's important and what isn't.



A labour of love

Despite our misgivings about the TV section, the UK publisher of WRTH continues to make substantial improvements to the overall content and quality of the book year by year. The 2008 edition, the 62nd, is once again the best and most comprehensive ever. There is no price increase compared to last year, and especially when you consider how much information you get, it's a real bargain. Therefore, we highly recommend it.



If you're interested in seeing what earlier editions of the WRTH looked like, still available are two CDs called WRTH 1946-58 and WRTH 1959-70 containing complete scans of all those editions in PDF files. The CDs were independently produced by the German listeners' organisation ADDX.





This review was done independently of the editors and publisher. We have no financial connection with either and provides the information above in good faith.


Saturday, January 19, 2008

Pacific Island Public Radio - RNZI Mailbox documentary January 21

The latest Radio Heritage Foundation documentary on Radio New ZealandInternational [RNZI] looks at the impending sale of government ownedSBC Samoa and considers its impact on local public radio in Samoa.
Previous privatization examples include Radio Cook Islands and WVUVAmerican Samoa. How have these stations fared since? What are the FMradio options that listeners in Apia, Pago Pago and Avarua currentlyenjoy.
Other broadcasters from outside the region, such as Radio ChinaInternational and Radio Australia, are now opening commercial free FMrelay stations across the region. Are the days of locally funded andoperated public radio stations in the islands numbered?
Currently, the 540 AM signal of SBC1 provides cyclone warnings for awide arc of islands including the two Samoas, Niue and Tokelau. Withthe station being sold, will this vital emergency service continue orbe closed down to save costs?
Listen to Mailbox on RNZI on Monday January 21 as David Ricquish ofthe Radio Heritage Foundation explores some of the issues. Visithttp://www.rnzi.com/ for shortwave frequencies and times, and to download anaudio on demand version of the program that will be available onlinefor four weeks from January 21.
For more information about broadcasting in the two Samoas, CookIslands and Tokelau, visit http://www.radioheritage.net/. An online versionof the program script along with exclusive images of Samoan radiowill also be available from later in January at http://www.radioheritage.net/.
Updated versions of the full Pacific Asian Log Radio Guides forMediumwave and Shortwave stations across the region are alsoavailable, and a new series of Pacific Radio Guides including all FMstations in the region will be available shortly athttp://www.radioheritage.net/.
The Radio Heritage Foundation "Sharing the Stories of Pacific Radio"
Radio New Zealand International website: http://www.rnzi.com/
Radio Heritage Foundation website: http://www.radioheritage.net/

euromaxx quiz

euromaxx quiz

Our euromaxx quiz is simple. All you have to do is examine four pictures and answer a simple question.

If you've got the answer just drop us a line and you could be the winner of a designer wristwatch made in Europe.

We eagerly await your entry (one entry per person per e-mail). Include your answers in the e-mail text, but not as an attachment.

There is no legal recourse.

 
 

European Capital Of Culture

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:

This week's quiz is about a city in Britain.

Every year, one or more cities in Europe are declared Capitals of Culture. In 2008, two port cities have been chosen ... one is the Norwegian city of Stavanger, the other a city in Britain. It's in the north-west, at the mouth of the River Mersey. Some 450,000 people live in this industrial city.It is famous for its fantastic art and music scene. It began the year as capital of culture with a massive show.

Our question this week: Which British city is 2008 European Capital of Culture? Is it:

LiverpoolBildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Liverpool

GlasgowBildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Glasgow

BirminghamBildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Birmingham

Manchester Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Manchester

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our keyword this week is "European Capital of Culture".

If you know the answer, you can write to us at:

DW-TV
euromaxx
Voltastrasse 6
13355 Berlin
Germany

Or email us at euromaxx.english@dw-world.de - no attachments please.

You can also send a fax to:
49 for Germany,
30 for Berlin,
4646 6505.

The deadline is February 1st. 2008. Please remember to include the keyword! And, as always, our decision is final.

Three weeks ago we asked you for the name of a famous European film director . The answer was picture A, Luc Jacquet and Alla Abouzied from bath, England is our lucky winner. A ladies' watch by the Italian firm Dolce & Gabbana will soon be yours.

The winner of our new draw will win a Jette Joop ladies' watch. So send in those entries! And please remember to include your full name and mailing address!

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Asia Compact's January quiz online

January Quiz


Please click on the link below to enter Asia Compact's January quiz online or send us your answers to the following question to win a short-wave radio and other Deutsche Welle prizes!

Which Asian country is holding its first general election this year?

A. Bhutan?
B. Nepal?
C. Bangladesh?

To be entered in the prize draw, please send your answers and your postal addresses to us at myasia at dw-world.de or to Deutsche Welle Radio, Asia English Department, Kurt-Schumacher Straße 3, 53113 Bonn, Germany.


The answer to December's question of which Asian country is taking over the G8 presidency from Germany in January was of course Japan. Thanks to all of those who entered the quiz and congratulations to all of those who got it right!


The winners will be announced shortly!

--
Swopan Chakroborty
Kolkata, India



Cops clean up the air over Sagar, 6 illegal radio stations busted

Suchetana Haldar
Posted online: Saturday , January 12, 2008 at 02:08:16
Updated: Saturday , January 12, 2008 at 02:23:15

Kolkata, January 11 The West Bengal Police today cracked down on six unauthorised private radio stations operating on Prasar Bharati frequencies. All have been operative in the various pockets under the Sagar police station in South 24 Parganas under names like Nagraj betar kendra, Ma Bishalakkhi and Ma Kali asthayi betar kendra. Acting on secret information from amateur radio operators, officers from the Sagar police station raided these centres.
Praveen Kumar, SP (South 24 Parganas) said: “We raided and dismantled six radio stations. Four persons were arrested. These stations have been running for long.”

A huge number of music CDs, DVDs, microphones and six radio transmitters and high frequency antennae were seized from these offices. The operators — Anukul Shaw, Shanatan Jana, Srikanta Pramanik and Gaur Chandra Maity — were in their early twenties. Jana runs a radio repair shop in his neighbourhood.
A year ago, amateur HAM radio operators had warned the monitoring station at Gopalpur, in South 24 Parganas, about unauthorised radio stations.
The monitoring station is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Communications, Government of India. The monitoring station had filed a police complaint last year, but it had been difficult to locate the base stations then. This year, the police succeeded in tracking them down.
In general, the makeshift stations operate by procuring indigenous transmitters. “Transmitter circuits can be readily made at homes. The radio operators then procure these transmitters and the entire station could come up for an investment of Rs 5000 only. Then they are free to air music, organise request shows and make revenues from advertisements,” said an amateur radio operator. The operators make brisk business round the year airing local ads.

These operators operate in the medium wave in the range of frequencies 565 KiloHz to 1600 kiloHz used for broadcasting services like All India Radio.

The unauthorised broadcasters often suppress the Prasar Bharati broadcasts as the transmitters are quite powerful locally, say within a radius of five to seven kilometres.



Sunday, January 13, 2008

Additional BBC Bengali coverage

Additional BBC Bengali coverage

Sat, 12 Jan 2008
Additional transmission noted from BBC Bengali Service :
0330-0430 13770 15225 17485 every Mo,Tu
1330-1500 9435 11655 every Su (1330-1400 hrs regular channels are 7225 7430 11835 kHz).

(Via Alokesh Gupta, new Delhi, India)
 

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Inside Europe Quiz January

Inside Europe Quiz




This month the small alpine country of Slovenia has taken up the rotating Presidency of the European Union.


The words of Slovenia's national anthem are from a poem written by one of the country's greatest poets, France Preseren. Appropriately for the EU presidency it speaks of equality and friendly co-existence among nations.


For our quiz question this month, we'd like to know what is the name of the poem by France Preseren that Slovenes sing as their national anthem.


You can email your answer to us at europe at dw-world.de or simply write to us the old-fashioned way to European Desk, Deutsche Welle, Bonn, Germany. We have five prizes to give away and the winners will be announced in mid-February.


Get those answers in, and good luck!

--
Swopan Chakroborty
Kolkata, India

Euromaxx quiz

Our euromaxx quiz is simple. All you have to do is examine four pictures and answer a simple question.

If you've got the answer just drop us a line and you could be the winner of a designer wristwatch made in Europe.
We eagerly await your entry (one entry per person per e-mail). Include your answers in the e-mail text, but not as an attachment.
There is no legal recourse.

Wilhelm Busch

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:

This week's quiz is about a famous illustrator.

A master of pen and ink ... Wilhelm Busch, German artist, humorist, poet and painter died a century ago.
His illustrated works are considered the forerunner of the modern comic. His characters' adventures have been translated into numerous languages. To mark the anniversary of his death, the Wilhelm Busch museum in Hanover invited twelve German comic strip artists to breathe new life into his characters. Artists like Ralf König and Volker Reiche have reinterpreted the original characters and the results are available in a new comic collection.
Our question this week: Which duo made Wilhelm Busch world famous? Is it:
Our keyword this week is "Wilhelm Busch ".
If you know the answer, you can write to us at:
DW-TV
euromaxx
Voltastrasse 6
13355 Berlin
Germany
Or email us at euromaxx.english at dw-world.de - no attachments please.
You can also send a fax to:
49 for Germany,
30 for Berlin,
4646 6505.
The deadline is 25th January, 2008. Please remember to include the keyword! And, as always, our decision is final.
Three weeks ago we asked you for the name of a famous racing driver.The answer was picture C, Michael Schumacher- and Chinenye Scholar Ozoemena from Nigeria is our lucky winner. A men's watch by the Danish firm Skagen will soon be his!
The winner of our new draw will win an Armani men's watch. So send in those entries! And please remember to include your full name and mailing address!


--
Swopan Chakroborty
Kolkata, India


Sunday, January 06, 2008

Dxers Unlimited's weekend edition 5-6 January 2008

Radio Havana Cuba
Dxers Unlimited
Dxers Unlimited’s weekend edition 5-6 January 2008
By Arnie CoroRadio
amateur CO2KK

Hi amigos radioaficionados around the world and in space… welcome to the weekend edition of Dxers Unlimited coming to you from Havana . I am Arnie Coro, radio amateur CO2KK , and it is my pleasure to begin another year during which Dxers Unlimited will be on the air, as always at the service of radio hobby enthusiasts , people like you and I who enjoy this wonderful way of spending our spare time.Now here is our first item of today’s program, it’s certainly very important news, that I am sure is going to make everyone really happy…
It’s news we were all waiting for ansiously… finally, it has happened, 93 million miles away from Earth, the long awaited first reverse magnetic polarity high latitude sunspot group has appeared, signaling the start of solar cycle 24 !!!Yes amigos, the Sun made headlines asSOLAR CYCLE 24 BEGINS: Solar physicists have been waiting for the appearance of a reversed-polarity sunspot to signal the start of the next solar cycle. The wait is over. January the third a magnetically reversed sunspot emerged at solar latitude 30 N,, and that amigos is what we were all waiting for …this is an almost one hundred percent assurance that the new cycle has now started, but let me add that the solar maximum for this new cycle is still several years away…The magnetic configuration of bipolar sunspots with leading positive/negative polarity in the northern/southern hemisphere, is associated with solar cycle 23. According to what is known as the butterfly rule, the new high latitude sunspot region belongs to cycle 24. It was named active region 10981 or just 981 for all practical purposes.New solar cycles always begin with a high-latitude, reversed polarity sunspot, according to solar scientists."Reversed magnetic polarity " means a sunspot with opposite magnetic polarity compared to sunspots from the previous solar cycle. "High-latitude" refers to the sun's grid of latitude and longitude. Old cycle spots congregate near the sun's equator. New cycle spots appear higher, around 25 or 30 degrees latitude.The region that appeared on Dec. 11th fitted both these criteria. It was high latitude (24 degrees N) and magnetically reversed. Just one problem: There wass no sunspot. That region was just a bright knot of magnetic fields. If, however, these fields coalesced into a dark sunspot, scientists were ready to announce that Solar Cycle 24 had officially begun, something they could not do, as no sunspot appeared there, but things changed radically early during 2008, when a real true active sunspot region was spotted by optical observations around the world. The new sunspot active region 981, at approximately 30 degrees latitude is a perfect match for all the criteria about the start up of a new solar cycle, so amigos, solar cycle 24 is now here with us. Now let me add that during the next several months sunspots from both cycles will be seen, those at high solar latitudes will be from cycle 24 and the ones near the solar equator will be the last ones from now coming to an end cycle 23…As more sunspots from cycle 24 appear, we may see an upward swing in the daily solar flux, and that should improve shortwave propagation all along 2008.Si amigos, yes my friends, oui mes amis… Cycle 24 is here and we are certainly happy that it finnally started !!! I’ll be back in just a few seconds after a short break for station ID. I am Arnie Coro in Havana……………….

You are listening to Radio Havana Cuba, the name of the show is Dxers Unlimited and here is item two of today’s program…Our antenna topics section will be devoted today to a special type of short wave antenna systems that are especially designed to provide short range ionospheric communications, using the so-called Near Vertical Incidence Skywave or NVIS propagation mode. NVIS antennas are very important for emergency communications systems, that use it when other systems suffer damages that reduce their traffic handling capacity or simply take them off the air. NVIS communications stations can be deployed anywhere and even one single individual is capable of setting up such a station in less than an hour, using low height wire antennas. Today, here at Dxers Unlimited’s antenna topics section we will be describing to you some of the most efficient NVIS antennas that have been used here in Cuba during tropical storms and hurricanes related emergencies, achieving a very high degree of reliability. The amateur bands used for NVIS systems here are 40 meters during the local daytime hours and 80 meters at night. The typical NVIS antenna is a half wave dipole installed at a very low height above the ground, so that the signal sent out by the antenna goes almost straight up at angles between 45 and 90 degrees. The signals come back to Earth with high intensity at distances from practically zero to around 700 kilometers around the transmitting station when the degree of ionization is at an adequate level. One interesting fact about NVIS communications is that they work quite well at rather low power levels, making possible for field stations to communicate using power outputs in the 10 to 100 Watt range. Base stations usually run higher power levels, but need to use the same type of low height antennas in order to assure that they are using the Near Vertical Incidence Skywave propagation mode. Another type of antenna recommended for these EMCOMMS or emergency communications stations is a full wave loop that is also installed at very low heights above the ground. One of the big mistakes that is often seen during communications emergencies is that field stations try to establish the NVIS mode links using vertical whip antennas, something that will prove to be a fruitless effort. Vertical antennas radiate at very low take off or departure angles, so very little radio frequency energy goes straight up as required for the NVIS mode to work. A few days ago a group of radio amateurs started to work on a new compact antenna system , that is smaller in size than a half wave dipole, while at the same time still been very efficient on the NVIS mode. The wire antenna , in its 40 meters band version requires just 11 meters of horizontal space between the masts or support structures, and is off center fed with coaxial cable and a coaxial cable choke to suppress the common mode radiation from the outside of the coax shield. The new antenna was designed using up to date sophisticated antenna modelling software and I am going to start testing the prototype next week. As soon as the preliminary test results are available, as always, I will be very happy to share them with Dxers Unlimited’s listeners and readers around the world.……

And now here LA NUMERO UNO, the number one most popular section of Dxers Unlimited, here at the first 2008 edition of the program, YOU have questions and Arnie tries to answer them…
Today’s question was sent by listener Mark in Ontario, Canada, and he wants to know more about low cost amateur radio equipment, because he tells me that he is on a shoestring budget, but nevertheless wants to start his own ham radio station. Well amigo Mark, not too long ago I made an attempt to create a low budget HF or short wave ham radio station, and after a few days , I was pretty happy with the results… Instead of trying to homebrew a sophisticated transceiver, my option uses a portable solid state short wave receiver that has a built in BFO or beat frequency oscillator. In my case the radio used for the project is a Sony ICF-7600-G portable, that is powered from four 1.5 volts penlight cells. The low cost ham station project includes a bandpass input filter and attenuator , with the transmit- receive switching incorporated into it, the 10 to 25 Watts power output solid state transmitter, and the AC power supply . No attempt was made to make anything miniature, in order to simplify the homebrewing. The Sony ICF7600-G is used with communications type earphones, and let me add that this is a CW , that is radiotelegraphy mode station, but a further development may turn it into a double side band voice station in the near future. The switching between receive and transmit is done while providing full protection to the front end of the portable receiver, and you can monitor the output of the transmitter by listening to the signal on the earphones. The whole station can be used for fully portable operation with a gell cell accumulator , that provides twelve volts DC to the transmitter, and 6 volts for the radio trough a simple one integrated circuit voltage regulator circuit. By using the SONY ICF-7600-G portable with its BFO, or any similar receiver, the low cost CW amateur station’s construction is simplified in a very significant way , because homebrewing a high quality digital readout receiver is quite a challenge, even for experienced radio amateurs. Assembling the bandpass input filter and RF attenuator and the transmit receive switching, the CW transmitter and the AC power supply while not a simple task is much more within the possibilities of homebrewers that are familiar with electronics and that can always obtain help from more experienced radio amateurs of your radio club. So amigo Mark, I have already e-mailed to you the block diagrams of this unique low cost amateur radio station project, as well as the circuit diagrams and some notes about the CW transmitter, the bandpass input filter and the transmit-receive switching system. This station is now on the air at CO2KK, operating on two bands, 40 and 20 meters with good results, despite the prevailing HF propagation conditions due to the extremely low solar activity. It like amigo Mark you are interested in learning more about this low cost approach ham radio station, just drop me an e-mail to arnie at rhc.cu, and I will send you the dot zip file with all the information required to duplicate this project.……

And now amigos, as always at the end of the show, here is Arnie Coro’s Dxers Unlimited HF propagation update and forecast … Solar flux is at a rather low 80 units, and the K index, the three hourly geomagnetic disturbance indicator was at a rather high figure of 5 early morning Saturday my local time here in Havana, at 12 hours UTC. This is due to the effects of a high speed solar wind that will disrupt HF propagation at high latitudes during the next two days. The winter Sporadic E season is now coming to an end, and we will have to wait until late April for the spring summer E skip season to start. The effective sunspot number is 20, and the daily sunspot number is now 20…

See you all at the midweek edition of the program amigos…
Send your signal reports,
QSL requests and radio hobby related questions to arnie at rhc.cu
or VIA AIR MAIL to
Arnie Coro
Radio Havana Cuba, Havana, Cuba

Airwaves from across border go sour

3 Jan 2008, 0124 hrs IST,
Yudhvir Rana ,TNN
AMRITSAR: With the advent of New Year, the airwaves from across the borderare striking a not-so-peaceful note. Radio Pakistan's programme "PunjabiDarbar" has reportedly intensified its propaganda against India, perhaps toprovoke people in border belt.The content aired is anti-government and even critical of the present Sikhleadership, presumably on the directions of Sikh separatists taking shelterin Pakistan.Despite cable and dish network in most villages, radio is still a source ofentertainment for a large number of farmers and farm labourers who oftencarry it to fields. "They want to provoke people of India against theirgovernment, a weak India is Pakistan's strength " said a senior BSFofficial.Aired at 7 pm every day, the programme often begins with Gurbani recitation,followed by spewing of venom against India either by criticizing its policesfor farmers or "suppression of a particular community" and ends with adviseto "rise to the occasion".In one such programme a Pakistan radio anchor said: "the Brahmin communityof India has unleashed a spate of atrocities on minority communities andSikhs are being denied their rights," and "Sikh farmers are committingsuicide due to anti-farmer policies of government.""This seems to be part of its multi-pronged strategy of waging a cold war,"opined Sukhdeep Singh, sarpanch of Mujwind while talking to the TOI onWednesday, adding that Pakistan should have discontinued the programme whenboth countries were treading on the path of peace."Peaceniks on both sides of the border should raise their voice againstthis." Harjit Singh, a border village resident said " sanu tae hasa aundahai ki uh kehandae ki nae " (We laugh at what they say). He said the wholeprogramme appears to be masterminded by ISI or a figment of the producers'imagination.

More FM Stations in India

Big FM has launched in Jodhpur, taking the totalnumber of stations to 42 across India.Big FM is already operational in places that includeMumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata andBangalore, and several Tier II towns.It will launch 4 more stations to complete 45 stationsall over India.Some of the shows are Big Chai, Nakhrali, Dil Dostietc, Big Dhamaal and Raat Chand Aur Mai.- Indiaprwire.com 03/01


Club FM 94.3 started broadcasting from here Kerala –Kannur on December 30. The new FM station started byMathrubhumi was inaugurated by Mathrubhumi ManagingDirector M.P. Veerendrakumar, MP. Mathrubhumi ManagingEditor P. V. Chandran was among those present.- The Hindu 02/01

Sunday December 2 2007 13:44 ISTExpress News ServiceT'PURAM: With Sun TV's S FM all set to follow Malayala Manorama's RadioMango, the sky of Kerala is changing to a battle field of corporate mediahouses.S FM will go on air from Kozhikode early next week as the second private FMradio station in the state.December will also see the entry of Radio Mirchi from the Times of Indiastable, Big FM, an Adlabs-Reliance joint venture, and Club FM, Mathrubhumi'sFM station, in the Kerala sky.Thiruvananthapuram is going to witness a fierce battle to see who willbecome the pioneer as S, Big, Mirchi and Club have all geared up for theshow and are waiting to clear a technical snag."Kerala had a good tradition of radio listening, thanks to the AIR. Thiswill make our task easier," said Nisha Narayanan, project head, S FM."Though we primarily target youngsters in the age group of 15-40 years, I amsure the channel will be acceptable for all who love music," said Nisha.S FM 93.5 has the most number of stations, five, in the state. The group hasplans to make these stations the best among its 45 stations in the country.Krishna Menon, station head, Radio Mirchi said Radio Mirchi is a 'bollywoodchannel' in Mumbai and likewise in Thiruvananthapuram, it will be a channelfocussing on Malayalam film industry.The Big FM has plans to win Malayalee hearts by organising Corporate SocialRelief activities.But, will a medium market like Kerala has the potential to support four orfive FM stations in each town? "The future lies in smaller cities," saidNisha Narayanan.The experts point out the example of Colombo's success. Though a mediumtown, Colombo is successfully supporting around 20 FM stations in Simhaleseand Tamil.

Updated Shortwave Pacific Asian Log Online

Updated Shortwave Pacific Asian Log Online
The latest database and pdf editions of Bruce Portzer's shortwavePacificAsian Log are now online at www.radioheritage.net.All the latest changes, new stations, new formats and much more.Thousands of SW radio stations covering the entire Asian Pacificregion. Online search possibilities. Access remains complimentary24/7 for worldwide users.This is the most comprehensive listing freely available anywhereonline. Well over 23,000 data entries to make your listening easier.Some shortwave countries are close to becoming extinct, with only oneentry each for places like Afghanistan, Antarctica, Bhutan, andNepal. Others have only two or three entries.However, China has 865 current entries indicating that shortwavebroadcasting remains very healthy in this growing Asian powerhouse. Whilst at www.radioheritage.net, read our new articles and stories aswell. Plenty of interest for everyone wanting to know all about radioacross the region.The updated mediumwave database version is already online as well.The NewZealand @ A Glance AM database now contains 200+ stations and hasalso been updated.
The New Zealand Low Power FM Radio Guide isupdated daily.Thanks for visiting www.radioheritage.net, home of the Radio HeritageFoundation.

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Radio fans rejoice, 97 new FM channels in a fortnight

Over the next fortnight, the country will have 97 new FM radio stations, a big leap for the already booming industry.The Information and Broadcasting Ministry would allow open bids from 27 companies for the FM radio stations to be launched in cities in five categories on December 29 and January 10. While cities like Delhi, B, Mumbaiangalore, Hyderabad, Allahabad and Jamshedpur will have only one channel, the FM magic will make its mark in smaller towns like Bikaner, Trichy, Udaipur, Warangal, Agartala and Gangtok.The ministry believes the FM bandwidth is already crowded in major cities and therefore, the scope of providing new FM channels to these centers would be difficult. However, in smaller towns the FM radio is expected to be a major success as more and more people are taking to listening to radio programmes.The auctioning is proving to be a win-win situation for both the government and the private radio stations. During an earlier bidding, the government had earned Rs 11 billion and has also resulted in a continuous flow of revenue. The government expects to have a huge response from the players this time also.Although there has been a delay of over six months for the auction to take place, industry sources said, that good sense has prevailed at last with the announcement of the new dates. The government had earlier announced an auction date for June, but had later postponed it to November. However, the December-January deadline is expected to stand.The ministry is also working on the third phase of FM channels, where all cities would get more FM stations. By next year FM radio players can expect the launch of the third phase, an official said.

Radio Taiwan International will hold Listeners' Club Meetings in Indiain February 2008

Radio Taiwan International will hold Listeners' Club Meetings in Indiain February 2008.

Scheduled meeting dates:
1. February 23, 2008 (Saturday) –limited to 35 listeners Time: 11:00 AM-14:30, Chennai (Madras)
2. February 24, 2008 (Sunday)-limited to 70 listeners Time: 11:00 AM-14:30, Kolkata (Calcutta)
3. March 1, 2008 (Saturday)-limited to 35 listeners Time: 11:00 AM-14:30, New DelhiVenues will be announced later
Qualifications:1. Please write an email and state which meeting you would like toattend by writing "Chennai", "Kolkata" or "New Delhi" in the email "subject".
2. In the email, please state your name, address, telephone number, your ID number and how many years you have listened to RTI.
3. Only listeners with passes will be allowed entry.

4. Attire: casual, but proper as requested by the management of the venue.5. Please send your email to rti at rti.org.tw by January 25, 2008

Radio Veritas Asia listeners meet in Chennai, India

Radio Veritas Asia listeners meet in Chennai, India

Radio Veritas Asia will hold Listeners' Club Meeting inChennai on 5 January 2008.
Venue : Santhom Communication Centre, 150, Luz Church road,Mylapore, Chennai - 600006.

73's
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Jaisakthivel,
59, Annai Sathya Nagar,
Arumbakkam,
Chennai-600106, India

Workshop On Software Defined Radio & Signal Processing at Kolkata

CQ CQ DE sandeep Lohia (vU3SXT) general call to all stations.Government College of Engineering & Ceramic Technology is organising atwo-day National Workshop on Signal Processing & its Application toSoftware Defined Radio on january 11-12,2008.
An important technology in the area of Wireless Communication is todesign and implement an Universal Communication Device in which all ofthe Signal Processing be done in Software and whose architecture &system parameters can be reconfigured by software updation instead ofhardware replacement to enable different modulation, coding and accessprotocols.Prof Asoke K Nandi (David jardine chair of Signal Processing) ofuniversity of Liverpool,UK and Prof S B Bilen Of Penn StateUniversity,USA will give special lectures.
In Association with:School of IT, West Bengal University of Technology,KolkataDefence Electronics Application Lab(DEAL),DRDO,DehradunAnd Network Partners:University College of Technology, KolkataHaldia Institute of Technology, HaldiaUnderTechnical Education Quality Improvement Program(TEQIP)For more information,Contact programme coordinator Bimal Pal On pal_bimal at yahoo.com or call on 9X231556479.

73's VU3SXT

BBC Bangla debates Dhaka's future with locals

Date: 06.12.2007

BBC Bangla is holding a unique broadcast debate. Dhaka: Your Town, YourQuestion will explore with local people the future development of the cityat the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre.Audiences in Dhaka can hear the one-hour debate on BBC 100FM on Thursday 6December 2007 at 20.00 local time. It will also broadcast on satellitetelevision channel ATN Bangla on Friday 7 December at 20.00 local time.Audio of the debate will be available online at bbcbengali.com.
Sabir Mustafa, Head of BBC Bangla and the debate host, said: "Dhaka is setto become one of the great metropolises of the world in the years ahead, andthis is an excellent time to debate the city's future with the people wholive there."It's also a great opportunity for BBC Bangla to really connect with itsaudience by giving them a platform to discuss the issues that are reallyimportant to them."We want them to share their views and create a vision for the future of thecity which is why I expect this debate to be a lively and constructive one."The Dhaka: Your Town, Your Question debate follows the successful month-longBBC Nodipathey Bangladesh (Bangladesh By The River) tour giving a voice tocommunities living along the major rivers of Bangladesh.Up to 50 BBC journalists brought daily reports highlighting the impact ofclimate change and the devastation of Cyclone Sidr in 17 languages to aglobal audience of millions on radio, TV and online.The BBC teams were on board when Cyclone Sidr hit which meant the boat hadto change its course and head back to the area devastated by the storm.The BBC was one of the first broadcasters to speak to the people worst affected and gave communities a unique opportunity to tell the world abouttheir experiences, losses and the effectiveness of the relief effort.On the tour, BBC Bangla also held four special editions of its weeklyinteractive radio, TV, and online question time programme Bangladesh Sanglapwith the BBC's international development charity, the BBC World ServiceTrust.Hosted by Shakeel Anwar, the final programme was dedicated to the aftermath of Cyclone Sidr. It gave those affected by the storm an opportunity to share their concerns with listeners across Bangladesh and directly engage with those leading the relief efforts.A detailed report of the Bangladesh Sanglap discussions along with the full audio is available at http://www.bbcbengali.com/.
A behind-the-scenes diary of the river tour, hundreds of images and an interactive map plotting the route of the journey is available at
BBC World Service Publicity