Last Updated on July 05, 2010 21:15

Significance  of Prasar Bharati

                Prasar Bharati has dual significance as India's Public Service Broadcaster and   National Broadcaster. Significance  of Prasar Bharati as Public Service Broadcaster  lies in the fact that private Broadcasters can not fulfill the real objectives of Public Service Broadcasting. Private broadcasting's entire output is defined by an imperative need to reach mass audience in order to sell products for their advertisers.

                 Private Broadcasters depends absolutely on the revenue from their advertisers, so we can't expect them broadcast programs which can't generate much revenue for them. Left to market forces alone ,it is certain that purely commercial broadcasting will not meet the needs of public service broadcasting. Because commercial broadcasting regards the audience as consumers and not as citizens. 

                Private broadcasters bargain with their advertisers with the purchasing power and the numbers of their viewers and listeners and not with the quality or standard or the social message of their programs. In a developing country  like India this distinction has considerable implications, since the market power or the purchasing  power  of a large number of the population will be small .  Moreover ,the information and the education needs of the population may not be met by commercial and private broadcasters 

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 Significance  of Prasar Bharati as National Broadcaster.

           National Broadcaster Prasar Bharati  has the largest reach in terms of technical coverage.  With its large network of terrestrial TV transmitters  and local radio  stations even in the most  difficult , remote and the border  areas it reaches 99.3% the population and  91.42% of geometrical areas. Besides with the introduction of DTH services ,now Prasar Bharati services are  available in all  the corners of our country. A strong Nation requires a strong national Broadcaster  which should be a symbol of national pride  for the entire nation and for all Indians in different parts of world . National Broadcaster has great strategic significance in emergency situations like  natural calamities,  war etc...

             In today's broadcasting scenario , explicit collaboration with  the western channels has become an accepted industry practice in India . It can be most dangerous in a war like situation. In a country like India with its numerous cultures ,religions and  languages, the national broadcaster Prasar Bharati has a great role to   play in national  integration, national security and national unity. For national integration, security  and unity  , we can't expect much from  a private- commercial broadcaster,   which will  be controlled either by  corporate houses, having multi national presence and  interests or by family interests .The  coverage given by the private broadcasters to the 36^th  national games held at Guwahati, Assam  on Feb.  2007 shows their  real attitude ,which even provoked the  I&B minister to ask in a television interview to a leading  Hindi news channel that, 

"Why you not shown National games, Are you not Indian citizens,   only PrasarBharati shown it".

            In a democratic country like India one of the basic objective of the national / Public service Broadcaster  should be to strengthen the democratic process by providing information ,promoting debate and  discussions on all vital issues and providing a platform for interaction between common man and policy maker.(Even though Private broadcasters can also do the above ,they may not be in  the interest of the  nation , because they will be influenced and controlled by the vested corporate and other interests controlling  the Private broadcasters. 

         So it is very clear that  PRASAR BHARATI  has great significance, even  in today's multi channel environment.