Doordarshan


Doordarshan is an autonomous public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Broadcasting Ministry of India and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest broadcasting organisations in studio and transmitter infrastructure, it was established on 15 September 1959. Doordarshaun, which also broadcasts on digital terrestrial transmitters, provides television, radio, online and mobile service throughout metropolitan and regional India and overseas through the Indian Network and Radio India.

History

Beginnings

The channel began modestly as an experimental broadcaster in Delhi on 14 September 1959, with a small transmitter and a makeshift studio. Regular daily transmission started in 1965 as part of All India Radio, with a five-minute news bulletin read by Pratima Puri. Salma Sultan joined Doordarshan in 1967, and became a news anchor.
Krishi Darshan debuted on Doordarshan on 26 January 1967, and is Indian television's longest running program.
Television service was extended to Bombay and Amritsar in 1972. Until 1975 only seven Indian cities had television service, and Doordarshan was the country's sole television provider.
Television service was separated from radio on 1 April 1976. The All India Radio and Doordarshan were placed under the management of separate directors-general in New Delhi. In 1982, Doordarshan became a national broadcaster.

Nationwide transmission

National telecasts were introduced in 1982. Colour television began in India with the live telecast of the Independence Day speech by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on 15 August of that year, followed by the colour telecast of the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi.
Live telecasts of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics were broadcast on its national channel, and DD Sports provided round-the-clock coverage.
On 17 November 2014, Doordarshan director-general Vijayalaxmi Chhabra introduced a pink-and-purple colour scheme and a new slogan: Desh Ka Apna Channel. Doordarshan transmitted over a network of nearly 1,400 terrestrial transmitters in 2017, with 46 studios producing TV programmes. After the introduction of private channels Doordarshan is struggling to keep its position in the television space. Currently Doordarshan is trying to improve its studios and programmes while its primary aim is to serve the country.

Channels

Doordarshan operates 46 Studios, it operates 21 channels: two all-India channels, 17 regional satellite channels, 11 state networks, an international channel, a sports channel, DD Bharati, DD Urdu and DD Kisan. On DD National, regional and local programs are carried on a time-sharing basis for terrestrial broadcasting only. DD News, launched on 3 November 2003 and replacing DD Metro, provides 24-hour news. These channels are relayed by all terrestrial transmitters in India. The regional-language satellite channels have two components: a regional service for a particular state, and additional programs in the regional language available through cable operators and DTH operators. DD Sports broadcasts sporting events of national and international importance. It is the only sports channel which telecasts rural sports such as kho-kho and kabbadi.
A new regional channel, DD Arunprabha was scheduled to begin on 15 February 2018; however, its launch was placed on hold. DD Arunprabha was launched on 9 February 2019.
On 9 March 2019, Prasar Bharati brought 11 more State DD Channels on the Satellite footprint of India through DD Free Dish. This includes five channels for Northeastern states. This will go a long way in strengthening regional cultures and fulfilling people's aspirations. These are –
DD Chhattisgarh, DD Goa, DD Haryana, DD Himachal Pradesh, DD Jharkhand, DD Manipur, DD Meghalaya, DD Mizoram, DD Nagaland, DD Tripura and DD Uttarakhand.
On 13 April 2020, DD Retro was launched by Prasar Bharati which will show old classic hindi serials of Doordarshan.

Channel list

National channels

Regional channels

ChannelLanguageRegion
DD ArunprabhaHindi and EnglishArunachal Pradesh
DD BanglaBengaliWest Bengal
DD BiharHindi and BihariBihar
DD ChandanaKannadaKarnataka
DD GirnarGujaratiGujarat
DD KashirKashmiri and UrduJammu and Kashmir
DD Madhya PradeshHindiMadhya Pradesh
DD MalayalamMalayalamKerala
DD Assam Assamese, Hindi and EnglishAssam
DD OdiaOdiaOdisha
DD PodhigaiTamilTamil Nadu
DD PunjabiPunjabiPunjab
DD RajasthanHindi and RajasthaniRajasthan
DD SahyadriMarathiMaharashtra
DD SaptagiriTeluguAndhra Pradesh
DD Uttar PradeshHindiUttar Pradesh
DD YadagiriTeluguTelangana

State Network

UT Network

Closed or renamed channels

The DD India satellite channel has been broadcast in 146 countries. In UK, it was available through the Eurobird satellite on the Sky system's channel 833; its logo was Rayat TV. Transmission via Sky Digital ended in June 2008, and via DirecTV in the United States the following month.

Criticism

is Doordarshan's parent body, and its board members are appointed by the Government of India through the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
Doordarshan has been used, especially during the Emergency, to disseminate government propaganda. During Operation Blue Star in 1984, only government sources were used to report the story. Doordarshan was complicit in the production of a video claiming acts of violence which, when investigated by independent journalists, were found to be false.
In 2004 it censored a controversial documentary on Jayaprakash Narayan, an opposition leader during the Emergency. When Doordarshan broadcast a 70-minute Vijayadashami speech by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader Mohan Bhagwat, the Narendra Modi administration and the BJP were criticised for "misusing" the public broadcaster. According to DD director-general Archana Datta, the "speech was like any other news event; therefore, we covered it."
Since private television channels were authorised in 1991, Doordarshan has experienced a steep decline in viewership. Although it earns significant advertising revenue—due to its compulsory feed—from the highest bidder for national events, there has been a proposal to fund it by imposing a licence fee to own a television in India.