All India Radio and Bangladesh Betar on Wednesday agreed to share transmission slots of two hours each in the morning and evening for broadcast of programmes highlighting commonalities between the two countries in various fields, officials said.
The decision brings India and Bangladesh a step closer towards realisation of the decision made during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh on sharing of audio content between the state broadcasters of the two countries.
A high-level meeting between the delegations of Prasar Bharati (All India Radio) and Bangladesh Betar was held in Kolkata wherein the modalities for implementation of the MoU signed between the two state broadcasters earlier in April 2018 have been worked out.
As per the decisions taken in the meeting, Bangladesh Betar and All India Radio (AIR) have agreed to share transmission slots of two hours each in the morning and evening for broadcast of programmes highlighting commonalities in the fields of art, culture, literature and history, among others, for the benefit of Bengali speaking population in both the countries, AIR officials said.
The state radios will air each other's programmes in those slots.
Bangladesh occupies an important position in the present government's neighbourhood policy.
A decision was taken during the 2015 visit of Prime Minister Modi to Bangladesh that both the state TV and radio shall jointly undertake production of programmes which are meaningful and utilitarian in nature for citizens in both the countries.
Among other things, a decision was also taken that AIR and Bangladesh Betar shall make special programmes during the forthcoming birth centenary celebrations of the founder of the Bangladesh Sheikh Mujib-ur-Rehman and India's role in the liberation movement of Bangladesh, officials said.
It was also decided that series based music reality shows and works of contemporary litterateurs of both the countries shall also be produced and broadcast.
A grand roll out event shall be organised in Dhaka in the second week of November, officials said.
AIR Director General F Sheheryar, who was leading the Prasar Bharati delegation, said India and Bangladesh not only have a shared history but also a shared future.
He indicated that this new collaborative platform between these two countries shall be further strengthened with the sharing of transmission slots and road map for joint production which was worked out at the meeting.
The Director General of Bangladesh Betar, Narayan Chandra Shill, expressed his satisfaction with the decisions taken and pointed out that the listeners in Bangladesh are very keen to receive content from AIR.
Amlan Mazumdar, Director External Services AIR, said this collaborative platform will provide opportunities to artistes from both the countries to showcase their talent before a larger audience in the two countries.
The Bengali-speaking diaspora spread all over the world will also be able to enjoy the programmes through live streaming on web-based applications, he said.
The two broadcasters shall also sync their resources in the fields news gathering, he said.
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