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Catholic religious channel to launch in Q1 2002
Religious channels have been prospering on Indian television for the last couple of years. Aastha, Sanskar, etc Punjabi (with its Gurbani telecast), Maharishi Veda Vision and the MiracleNet are some of the channels which have made their debut. Now there’s another waiting on the sidelines to make a foray: the Eternal World Television Network (EWTN) Global Catholic Network. The channel’s management has announced that it will launch a television service for India in the first quarter of 2002. As part of the launch, EWTN will also expand the reach of its television service currently available in Africa.
According to EWTN president Michael Warsaw, the Network has reached an agreement in principle with PanAmSat to move its current Africa channel from the PAS 3 satellite to the recently launched PAS 10 spacecraft. With this shift, Warsaw says this move will not only allow EWTN’s content to be seen and heard by more than 99 per cent of the Catholic population on the African continent, but will also make both its radio and TV service available to more than 10,000 cable television systems in India.
“Like the Apostle Thomas, who first preached the Gospel in India two thousand years ago,” Warsaw notes “EWTN will soon bring that same message to new television and radio audiences throughout this vast region.”
In a related move, EWTN has signed an agreement with satellite radio provider WorldSpace Direct Media Service to bring EWTN’s multimedia content to personal computers throughout Africa and Asia. Says Warsaw: “EWTN is extremely pleased to once again be working at the cutting edge of technology by being able to offer our Internet content directly to the end users of the WorldSpace system.”
EWTN has been in existence for than 20 years and telecasts to more than 70 million TV homes accross the globe. Its founder Mother M. Angelica, a Poor Clare nun, set up Our Lady of Angels Monastery in Irondale, Alabama, and then started creating mini-books with religious teachings. As these gained in popularity, she created a video series of her talks taped at a local Birmingham television station and followed this up with a television studio on monastery property in Irondale. That small TV studio has now evolved into a state of the art audiovisual complex funded totally by gifts from individuals and groups, and visited annually by thousands of pilgrims.
In 1992, her vision ever expanding, with contributions from the late Piet Derksen couple, Mother Angelica established the world’s largest privately owned short wave radio station on a mountain top 20 miles from EWTN. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day in English and Spanish to areas of the world including those remote places not reached by television.
The heart of EWTN TV Channel is its show, Mother Angelica Live, hosted by Mother Angelica, which is broadcast before a live audience every Tuesday and Wednesday night. In addition, EWTN offers several live programs including the Daily Mass from the chapel in Irondale, Life on the Rock, a teen and young adult show with host Jeff Cavins, The Journey Home with Marcus Grodi and The World Over with news anchor Raymond Arroyo. The network also airs documentaries, weekly series hosted by leading Catholic theologians, coverage of Church events in the U.S. and abroad, seasonal music specials, the Rosary and other devotional prayer segments.
EWTN will be a free to air channel.
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
