Doordarshan, AIR tower lying defunct, yet to rule air waves in Amritsar

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 3

Almost eight years have lapsed since the Union government installed state-of-the-art tower for Doordarshan and All India Radio (AIR) at border Gharinda village, near Attari, but it has still not been commissioned.

The tower is fit to handle radio and TV transmissions. It can easily check the propaganda of Pakistan-based television channels and radio in the Indian border belt. The tower of Amritsar radio station, which has the coverage area of 80 miles (130 km), is expected to counter Lahore radio, which has deep penetration in the Indian territory. Programmes transmitted from the Amritsar radio station can cover Sialkot and Gujranwala along with Lahore in Pakistan.

It cost the government Rs 20 crore to construct building and provide other infrastructure for the tower. A civil engineer Harjap Singh Aujala, who claims to have studied broadcasting in Punjab of both Indian and Pakistan, said, “Since 1937 Amritsar falls within the local coverage area of Radio Pakistan in Lahore. Currently, three medium-wave and another three FM transmitters are operating from Radio Pakistan Lahore, which is a major broadcasting centre of Pakistan.”

He said Fazilka, another border station in Punjab, had already got a single-channel All India Radio station. “It operates with a single 20 kilowatt FM transmitter on 100.8 megahertz. But Fazilka broadcasts only the Urdu service of the AIR,” he added.

Notably, permission for the high power radio station was granted to Amritsar along with Rae Bareli and Amethi, by former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh in 2007. Work on the construction of the AIR stations in Rae Bareli and Amethi had started much later, but both these places had have full-fledged radio stations, including studio facilities, by January, 2014. Aujla lamented that the Amritsar radio station was yet to start transmitting its programmes.

He added that high-profile Rae Bareli and Amethi, represented by Gandhi family, received more importance. On the other hand, there was nobody to push the case for the commissioning of the tower in the holy city.

Civil and mechanical works for the fabrication of the 1,000 foot high All India Radio and Doordarshan tower commenced at Gharinda (Amritsar) in May 2007. The tower was completed in 2013.

Aujla recalled that before 1947 Amritsar was covered by first grade broadcasting service of All India Radio Lahore. After the Partition, AIR Lahore became Radio Pakistan Lahore and a hostile station.

On persistent demand, Amritsar got medium-wave station of the AIR in 1948-49. This radio station functioned satisfactorily for five years. In 1953, AIR Jallandhar was strengthened and AIR Amritsar shut down permanently.

A keen lover of music and heritage, NRI Harjap Singh Aujla, who is settled in the USA, has a store house of music broadcasted by the AIR before and after the Partition. He is willing to donate his collection to Amritsar radio station.