Sushma’s narrowcasting: look who all are in the net

Not content with broadcasting for the benefit of the nation, Sushma Swaraj is expanding her Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s repertoire to include ‘‘narrowcasting’’—inaugurating TV channels in rural areas to telecast programmes tailormade for rural audiences. And, just in case rural audiences miss the big picture, all the DD channels will be set up in non-BJP states, and all of them will be inaugurated by BJP ministers of state at the Centre.

At least nine television stations will be inaugurated at the end of the month. The chosen patron ministers of state include I D Swami (Home), P C Kandhuri (Surface Transport), Basana Gaud Patil (Textiles), M K Anna Patil (Rural Development), Bandaru Dattatreya (Railways), S Tirunavakarasu (Shipping) O Rajagopal (Urban Development). The places chosen: Bellary (from where Swaraj lost to Sonia Gandhi), Aamalapuram, Hissar, Palakkad, Nainital, Coimbatore, Akola, Sagar and Bilaspur (Raipur), Patiala and Ferozepur (Jalandhar).

‘‘The Prasar Bharati Corporation chose the places and I thought I would ask my ministers to inaugurate the channels,’’ Swaraj told The Indian Express.

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The occasion would present the ministers the opportunity of addressing people in their mother tongue, she added. ‘‘Anna Patilji can, for instance, address his people in Marathi,’’ Swaraj suggested.

These are areas which don’t receive Doordarshan DD-Metro channel. Local transmitters will be used to uplink the channels, and operations will be supervised by the ministry’s regional Song and Drama Divisions.