Centre to invest 400 crore for AIR, DD in NE region

Aizawl, May 16 : With the aim to improve the coverage standards of the All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan (DD) services in the North East, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has cleared implementation of Phase-II of Special Package.

The project is estimated to cost Rs 400.17 crore, the official sources here today informed.

The AIR would contribute Rs 143.32 crore towards the package while DD's share was Rs 265.85 crore.

The CCEA has also given its ex-post-facto approval for the expenditure incurred during the financial year 2005-06.

The announcement of this package would lead to increased coverage of DD and AIR both in terms of area and population in NE as well as improving the quality of programmes especially in the remote areas of the region.

The package would also be used for expansion of FM coverage in the region by setting up FM transmitters along with studios as well as strengthening of some of the existing centres.

Against the available provision of Rs 170.55 crore in the 10th Plan for this scheme, the projected outlay for AIR is Rs.143.32 crore. The scheme is fully funded in the 10th Plan.

The schemes are expected to be completed by March 2007. After implementation of the Special Package, AIR coverage is expected to increase to 81.15 percent of the area and 97.62 percent of the population in the North East. AIR coverage in the North East is currently 78.7 per cent by area and 96.16 per cent by population.

DD's coverage at present in the North East is 61.1 per cent by area and 84.1 per cent by population. The new project aims at extending TV coverage to about 95 percent of the population of the region with superior quality services.

As part of satellite networking to improve DD coverage further under Phase-II, procurement of four DSNG Units, four vehicle mounted and four fly away type in C and KU Bands are also proposed under the package.

By implementing Phase II, coverage of DD in NE is expected to go up to 75.9 percent by area and 94.8 percent by population with significant improvement in the quality of signals, the official sources claimed.

UNI