BBC to hit dusty roads of UP, Bihar from Nov 16

Varanasi, Nov 14: As part of attempts to penetrate into the country's Hindi speaking belt, the BBC Hindi service will soon hit the dusty roads of East Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand from November 16 to December 25 next.

''BBC Hindi hopes to meet over 20,000 listeners in a series of roadshow events titled Your World Your Voice, spanning 14 towns of East UP, Bihar and Jharkhand, starting from carpet export hotspot of Bhadohi on November 16 and ending at Gopalganj in Bihar on December 25,'' Head of BBC Hindi Achala Sharma told mediapersons here yesterday.

In this roadshow to be carried through mobile studio, audience will be engaged in lively debates to be broadcast live on the BBC together with other activities including street theatre, she added.

In UP, the BBC team will meet with audiences in Bhadohi, Obra and Renukoot, where issues like naxalism, carpet industry and effect of industrialisation on environment will be discussed.

''The topics for debate have been selected after exhaustive research by a research agency 'Prastut' which has interviewed decision-makers and residents alike to provide the right platform for the road show,'' Ms Sharma added.

The BBC Hindi road show that forays into Bihar and Jharkhand on November 24 and December 2 respectively will cover a wide range of issues like illegal arms and crime rate, law and order, water shortage and unemployement, she added.

During its Bihar and Jharkhand travel, the roadshow will visit Sasaram, Arra, Nawada, Ramgarh, Munger, Barauni, Hajipur and Siwan.

''This will be the third roadshow of BBC since 2004 in the Hindi speaking belt of the country, which represents 83 per cent of the 17 million listener base of BBC Hindi service which accounts to 11 per cent business of BBC World Service,'' Michel Lobelle, Head of Business Development, Asia and the Pacific Region said.

''We want to penetrate further into the Hindi belt of India and this roadshow will help us hook BBC to the nook and cranny of this politically conscious belt, where BBC is already a brand with youth,''he observed.

UNI