Bishnu Rana

TEZU, Dec 14: All India Radio (AIR) Tezu, the second oldest radio station in Arunachal Pradesh and the remotest and last radio station along the nation’s international borders is now facing a series of acute technical drawbacks that has made almost impossible for quality transmission to continue.
The station was commissioned on August 15, 1967 which was later upgraded to 10 Kilowatt Medium Wave Transmitter in 1988 and currently functionswith a 350 Watt Collins (T/R) Transmitter, which is also of less capacity in respect of current transmission standards. Due to obsolete machinery, the aired programmes fail to cover the listening zones. “To make it effective, AIR Tezu has repeatedly submitted various reminders to the Additional Directorate General (Engg) NEZ, Guwahati in the past, although the pleas had been paid no heed,” regretted the Programme Executive AIR Tezu, Anand Miyi. Several organisations like the All Arunachal Pradesh Gaonburah Welfare Association (AAPGWA), All Mishmi Women Welfare Society (AMWWS), Cultural & Literary Society of Mishmi (CALSOM) and All Mishmi Student Union (AMSU) also submitted memorandums to MP East Parliamentary Constituency Tapir Gao, Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and Chief Minister Pema Khandu during their visit to Tezu, but without any result and the dream of having an FM channel still remains elusive for the local population, he added.
“We approached them on various occasions during their visit to Tezu with the plea to make the services better due to its strategic location where powerful foreign transmissions dominate. To counter them, a strong transmission system is required to entertain and disseminate local news in these far-flung areas,” stressed GB Soloi Ngadong. “The 10KW MW Transmission is defective which makes the reception quality and coverage miserable and due to low power, breakdowns are common occurrences. To offer better services we installed a 10 KW FM Transmission system and relay the AIR Itanagar programmes, but unfortunately its air time has been drastically curtailed till 10.30 pm owing to power shortage. Availability of a dedicated power line to relay 24x7 Vividh Bharati and FM Rainbow programmes could meet the entertainment expectations of the public of the north eastern districts of the state,” the Programme Executive hoped. He further stressed on early upgradation of the current 10 KW Medium Wave Transmission facility to a 10 KW FM Transmission along with an uninterrupted power supply to revive the lost glory of AIR Tezu.

AIR Tezu, since inception had been broadcasting information, knowledge and entertainment in this far-flung district of the country for more than 50 years and been playing an influential role in promoting the myriad cultures and traditions  of different communities. Simultaneously, it also reinforces ethnic and cultural awareness by taking the services of programmers from all religions and communities. It is worth recalling that the current Dibang, Lower Dibang Valley, Anjaw and Namsai districts were carved out of the erstwhile Lohit district and after realignment, its approximate geographical area now stands at 11, 402 sq km, with China and Myanmar in the East as international neighbours and Assam in the west. 

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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