On the other hand, the All India Radio (AIR) channels do not enjoy such penetration in Pakistan.
As many as six Pakistani radio channels enjoy massive popularity in India's Punjab, an internal government note has revealed. The channels have clear signals and attractive Punjabi programmes, interspersed with Bollywood and Punjabi music, increasing their mass appeal.
On the other hand, the All India Radio (AIR) channels do not enjoy such penetration in Pakistan.
The note, prepared by an AIR team and sent recently to top officials of Prasar Bharati and other government bodies, was based on an inspection carried out by the team across the country's International Border (IB) with Pakistan, during a visit to Punjab's Amritsar and Jalandhar last month.
The channels mentioned in the note were Radio Awaz, FM 100, Mast FM, FM Chaupal, Summer FM, and FM 101 of Radio Pakistan.
The note stated that these radio channels broadcast Bollywood and Punjabi music programmes, which get a tremendous response from Indian listeners, who even send feedback and requests through phone calls and messages. It added that the channels gave an impression that they were being broadcast from India.
Sources across AIR stations in Punjab said that on the other hand, some private FM channels from Amritsar do have a listenership in Pakistan but the AIR has very little presence on the Punjab-Pakistan IB.
"Propaganda messages or those detrimental to the country's interests can possibly be presented in between these songs and other musical programmes, which will be very difficult to monitor," an AIR Punjab official said.
Currently, the AIR broadcasts programmes in Punjabi from its Jalandhar station through short and medium wave transmitters, which are now worn out. Hence, the signals are transmitted across the border only intermittently.
Another problem is that the dialect of Punjabi in Jalandhar is different from that in Amritsar.
There is a 20 KW FM transmitter installed in the border district of Fazilka, which carries AIR's Urdu service. This transmitter covers a radius of 80 km and has a penetration of up to 68 km inside Pakistan. It is, however, of little help as most of its Pakistani listeners speak Punjabi.
Last year, DNA had reported that the AIR had planned to revitalise its existing Punjabi service 'Des Punjab' through a new FM transmitter in Amritsar, with an aim to reach out to Pakistani Punjabis. Highly placed government sources have now told DNA that the service, which is set to be inaugurated soon, will reach Pakistan's Lahore, Sialkot, and Gujranwala areas, where people are predominantly Punjabi speaking. The AIR has also recommended that programmes be generated from Amritsar in the Punjabi dialect common in the belt.
The AIR's external services division airs programmes in Urdu, Saraiki, Sindhi, and Pashto as well, besides Punjabi, for Pakistani listeners.
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