The Ministry of Information
and Broadcasting has issued the guidelines for granting licenses
to well established educational institutions/organizations like
Universities and Institutes
of Technology/Management and
residential schools recognized by the
Central Government or the State Government. The salient features
of eligibility criteria, basic conditions/obligations and procedures
for obtaining license to set up and operate Community Radio service
are briefly described below:
Licence will be granted
for FM transmitters for power of 50 Watts or less. Any eligible
institution/organization desirous of setting up of Community Radio
broadcasting service may make an application to the Ministry of
I&B in the prescribed proforma. The Ministry of I&B immediately
on receipt of an application will consult the Wireless Advisor
in WPC wing of Ministry of Communications and also Prasar Bharati
to determine the availability of frequency at the place requested
by the applicant.
The Ministry of Information
& Broadcasting will refer the eligible applicant case to the
Ministries of Home Affairs, Defence, Human Resources Development
and External Affairs and letter of intent and/or license will
be issued only after getting the requisite clearances from these
Ministries. The licensee will be required to sign a licence agreement
after allotment of frequency by WPC.
Within one year from
the date of signing of licence agreement, the applicant will complete
all necessary formalities such as obtaining SACFA clearance etc.,
set up the necessary broadcast facilities and obtain a Wireless
Operating Licence from the Wireless Advisor in the WPC Wing of
the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
In the event of more
than one claimant for a single frequency at a given place, the
licensee will be selected by a Committee constituted by the Ministry
of I&B on the basis of standing, commitment, objectives and
resources of the applicant organization.
Licensee will be
charged only the spectrum usage fee as determined by the WPC.
The Ministry of I&B will not levy any other licence fee.
Terms and Conditions
The basic objective
of the Community Radio broadcasting would be to serve the cause
of the community in the service area of the licensee by involving
members of the community in the broadcast of their programmes.
For this purpose community would mean people living in the coverage
zone of the broadcasting service of the licensee.
The licence shall
be for a period of three (3) years. The licence
shall not be transferable. An applicant will not be permitted
more than one licence. The licensee shall provide its services
on free to air basis. The licensee shall not use its channel/broadcast
services in whole or part for commercial purposes. The licensee
shall follow the Programme Code of All India Radio.
The programmes on
the community radio service will focus on issues relating to education,
health, environment, agriculture rural and community development.
The content must be confined to social, cultural and local
issues and the format, subject, presentation and language must
reflect and exude the local flavour and fragrance.
The licensee shall
not be permitted to broadcast any news and current affairs programmes
and shall not air election and political broadcasts. The
licensee shall not air any advertisement or sponsored programmes.
The licensee shall ensure that nothing is included in the programme
of the licensee which: offends against good taste
or decency; contains criticism of friendly countries; contains
attack on religions or communities or visuals or words contemptuous
of religious groups or which promote communal attitudes;
contains anything obscene, defamatory, deliberate, false and suggestive
innuendos and half truths; is likely to encourage or incite violence
or contains anything against maintenance of law and order or which
promote-anti-national attitudes; contains anything amounting to
contempt of court; contains aspersions against the integrity of
the President and Judiciary; contains anything affecting the integrity
of the Nation; criticizes, maligns or slanders any individual
in person or certain groups, segments of social, public and moral
life of the country; encourages superstition or blind belief;
denigrates women; denigrates children, may present/depict/suggest
as desirable the misuse of drugs including alcohol, narcotics
and tobacco or which may stereotype, incite, vilify or perpetuate
hatred against or attempt to demean any person or group on the
basis of ethnicity, nationality, race, gender, sexual preference,
religion, age or physical or mental disability. The licensee shall
ensure that due care is taken with respect to religious programmes
with a view to avoiding – (a) Improper
exploitation of religious susceptibilities; and (b)
offence to the religious views and beliefs of those belonging
to a particular religion or religious denomination.
The licensee shall
ensure that due emphasis is given in the programmes to promote
values of national integration, religious harmony, scientific
temper and Indian culture. Though the licensees will operate the
service under the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting,
Govt. of India, the licensing will be subject to the condition
that as and when any regulatory authority to regulate and monitor
the broadcast services in the country is constituted, the licensees
will have to adhere to the norms, rules and regulations prescribed
by such authority.
The licensee shall
provide such information to the Government on such intervals as
may be required. In this connection, the licensee is required
to preserve tapes of programmes broadcast during the last six
months failing which the Government will be at liberty to revoke
the license.
The Government or
its authorized representative shall have the right to inspect
the broadcast facilities of the licensees and collect such information
as considered necessary in public and community interests. The
Government reserves the right to take over the entire services
and networks of the licensee or revoke/terminate/suspend the licence
in the interest of national security or in the event of national
emergency/ war or low intensity conflict or similar type of situations.
All foreign personnel
likely to be deployed by way of appointment, contract, consultancy,
etc. by the licensee for installation, maintenance and operation
of the licensee’s services shall be required to obtain security
clearance from the Government of India.
The Government reserves
the right to modify at any time the terms and conditions if it
is necessary to do so in the interest of the general public or
for the proper conduct of broadcasting or for security considerations.
Government may revoke the licence at any time in public interest
or for breach of any terms and conditions of the licence by giving
a notice of 15 days. Notwithstanding anything contained anywhere
else in the licence the Government’s decision shall be final and
conclusive.
The licensees shall
furnish a bank guarantee for a sum of Rs.50,000/- (Rupees fifty
thousand) only to ensure timely performance of the licence agreement.
If the licensee fails to commission services within the stipulated
period, he shall forfeit the amount of bank guarantee to the Government
and the Government would be free to cancel the licence awarded
to the licensee. A license will be subject to such other
conditions as may be determined by the Government.
