Union Minister Prakash Javadekar had inaugurated Video Walls in all eight Doordarshan Studios and Earth Station at DD Kendra, Delhi on Thursday. Speaking on the occasion, Prakash Javadekar emphasized on the significance of the Video Walls in enhancing the viewer experience.
Javadekar said that under the three-year action plan of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, support has been given to Doordarshan to modernize its infrastructure. He asserted that the addition of State of Art Video Walls and Spectrum efficient Satellite equipment is a step in the direction of revamping the Public Service Broadcaster.
The Earth Station is based on spectrum efficient technology and will enable DD to almost double the number of channels in the same bandwidth. It is also HD capable.
Significantly, however, the I&B Minister stated that professionals will be inducted into Doordarshan to make it more competitive and augment the quality of the broadcaster’s content. He said that while government officials will continue to be involved in administration, Creative Head will be inducted into the management of the broadcaster and professionals will be brought in to improve content quality. Prakash Javadekar thus hinted that lateral entry into Doordarshan is a strong possibility.
The Union Minister essentially proposed a clear separation of powers whereby the administrative responsibilities shall remain with the officers but professionals must run the editorial and creative wings. This would ensure professionalism and clarity in the long and short term.
The move appears to be along the lines of what the government has tried to achieve with Rajya Sabha TV. Despite initial obstacles, the model is functioning smoothly and yielding good results.