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All India Radio Kolkota is now digitally ready

All India Radio Kolkota is now digitally ready

On September the 8th the CEO of Prasar Bharati (the Indian public radio and television organisation) Mr Jawhar Sircar inaugurated the new 200kW medium wave transmitter at All India Radio, Kolkata ( ‘A’, 657 kHz) at Chandi making AIR Kolkata digital ready. This brings the total of new DRM medium wave transmitters commissioned in India to 21 (out of planned 35).

The old transmitter was valve-based whereas the new one is purely solid-state with higher efficiency, which will mean significant electricity savings for All India Radio. This transmitter will cover the whole of South Bengal, adjoining regions in the eastern part of India and part of Bangladesh. The transmitter will start with simulcasts but can be switched to pure DRM very quickly, which will bring extra energy savings. The sound quality in DRM is similar if not better than FM.

After inaugurating the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) transmitter of Kolkata – a channel of All India Radio, Mr Sircar also suggested that AIR, Kolkata B channel could be switched over to different language programme to cater for the needs of the growing number of multilingual metro citizens.

The Engineering Chief of Kolkata, Animesh Chakraborty, said the new digital system would work simultaneously with analogue until all the radio sets switched to digital sets in next few years.

Altogether 33 digital sets will be set up in all the radio stations, including Calcutta B and Siliguri in phases, Mr Chakraborty added.

 

More on the launch on the AIR website:

http://airddfamily.blogspot.in/2015/09/200-kw-mw-drm-kolkata-transmitter.html

Video

https://youtu.be/ZnN07LmQez8

Press coverage

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/media/non-fm-radio-old-age-home-for-youngsters-jawahar-sircar/articleshow/48871946.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Tune-in-to-nostalgia-with-new-Kolkata-A-avatar/articleshow/48841376.cms?from=mdr