Lok Sabha Question No. 85 (STARRED), answered on 2016-07-22
Subject: Community Radio Station for Tribal Community
Ministry: INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
Asked by: SUBHASH PATEL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION No. 85 (TO BE ANSWERED ON 22.07.2016)

## COMMUNITY RADIO STATION FOR TRIBAL COMMUNITY

## *85. SHRI SUBHASH PATEL

- Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state: (a)  the  salient  features  of  Community  Radio  Stations  (CRS)  along  with  the  number  of operational CRS across the country, State/UT-wise; (b)  whether  the  Government  has  formulated  any  scheme  for  starting  CRS  for  tribal community in the country; and (c)  if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  states  in  which  the  said  radio  service  has  been

started /likely to be started?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING (SHRI M. VENKAIAH NAIDU)

- (a) to (c): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) OF THE LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 85 FOR REPLY ON 22.07.2016

(a)  Community Radio Station (CRS) is a low-power radio station operated by the local community/local organisation for development communication. It provides an opportunity to  the  community  to  speak  about  issues  concerning  their  lives.  CRS  operate  on Frequency Modulation (FM), which is easily accessed by people on their radio sets or mobile phones.

At  present  196  CRS  are  operational  across  the  country.  State/UT-wise  details  are  at Annexure .

(b)  &  (C)  Permission  to  set  up  Community  Radio  Station  is  granted  under  the  Policy Guidelines for setting up of Community Radio Stations in India, issued in the year 2006. These guidelines are available at Ministry's website, www.mib.nic.in. Eligible organizations  can  apply  for  permission  to  set  up  CRS  at  any  time  in  any  part  of  the country  including  organizations  working  for  tribal  communities.  Permission  is  granted, subject to fulfillment of eligibility criteria and receipt of clearances from Ministry of Home Affairs,  Ministry  of  Defence,  Wireless  Planning  and  Coordination  Wing  of  Ministry  of Communication  &  IT,  Ministry  of  Human  Resource  Development  and  Ministry  of Agriculture and, as the case may be.

Ministry is organizing awareness workshops in districts where no CRS exist i.e. CR dark districts.  Organisations  working  in  CR  dark  districts  are  invited  in  these  workshops  to ensure that Community Radio stations are set up in such areas .

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## ANNEXURE AS REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF THE LSSQ NO. 85 TO BE ANSWERED ON 22.07.2016

## State/UT wise details of Operational Community Radio Stations in India

| Sr. No.           | STATE/ UT                   | OPERATIONAL CRS   |
|-------------------|-----------------------------|-------------------|
| 1                 | Andhra Pradesh              | 6                 |
| 2                 | Arunachal Pradesh           | Nil               |
| 3                 | Assam                       | 3                 |
| 4                 | Bihar                       | 5                 |
| 5                 | Chhattisgarh                | 3                 |
| 6                 | Goa                         | Nil               |
| 7                 | Gujarat                     | 6                 |
| 8                 | Haryana                     | 9                 |
| 9                 | Himachal Pradesh            | 2                 |
| 10                | Jammu and Kashmir           | 1                 |
| 11                | Jharkhand                   | 1                 |
| 12                | Karnataka                   | 16                |
| 13                | Kerala                      | 9                 |
| 14                | Madhya Pradesh              | 15                |
| 15                | Maharashtra                 | 17                |
| 16                | Manipur                     | Nil               |
| 17                | Meghalaya                   | Nil               |
| 18                | Mizoram                     | Nil               |
| 19                | Nagaland                    | Nil               |
| 20                | Orissa                      | 10                |
| 21                | Punjab                      | 4                 |
| 22                | Rajasthan                   | 8                 |
| 23                | Sikkim                      | Nil               |
| 24                | Tamil Nadu                  | 29                |
| 25                | Telangana                   | 7                 |
| 26                | Tripura                     | Nil               |
| 27                | Uttarakhand                 | 9                 |
| 28                | Uttar Pradesh               | 22                |
| 29                | West Bengal                 | 2                 |
| Union Territories | Union Territories           |                   |
| 30                | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Nil               |
| 31                | Chandigarh                  | 3                 |
| 32                | NCT of Delhi                | 6                 |
| 33                | Dadra and Nagar Haveli      | Nil               |
| 34                | Daman and Diu               | Nil               |
| 35                | Lakshadweep                 | Nil               |
| 36                | Puducherry                  | 3                 |
| GRAND TOTAL       | GRAND TOTAL                 | 196               |