I&B Ministry
Gender issues: BBC & UNICEF join community radio stations
NEW DELHI: ‘Full On Nikki’, a unique youth show with special focus on gender issues among young adults and adolescents, has commenced broadcast on Panjab University (PU)’s community radio Radio — Jyotirgamaya 91.2MHz and 24 other CRS in different parts of the country.
Though created and developed by BBC Media Action in partnership with United Nation’s Chukdreb’s Fund (UNICEF), it will include local programming created and developed by Radio Jyotirgamaya.
The inaugural episode on the theme ‘The Voice and Silence’ had the participants express various concerns regarding Voice and Silence for the youth.
This is the first international collaboration for the Panjab University Community Radio and will be broadcast on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7:30 pm on Radio Jyotirgamaya 91.2 Mhz with repeats on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at the same time.
According to University Registrar Col GS Chadha (retd), it was a matter of great pride for PU to have an international collaboration with BBC and UNICEF which would not only enabled sensitization of young boys and girls to gender issues, but was also crucial in the development of community radio in India.
Chairperson Archana R Singh said the 78-episode series would focus on the dreams and aspiration of the youth worldwide. It also aimed at sensitizing the age group of 10 to 19 years towards gender and developing a conceptual understanding of related issues.
The show will be broadcast under the agreement signed between Indian Community Radio Association and UNICEF.
Out of 193 Community Radio stations running in India, PU’s Radio Jyotirgamaya 91.2 Mhz is among the 25 Community Radio stations that have been chosen under the international collaboration to broadcast the show, she added.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati opens AIR to private content under new policy
NIPP introduces revenue share, sponsored and gratis models
MUMBAI: Radio may be the oldest voice in the room, but it’s learning some very modern tricks. In a bid to stay tuned to changing listener habits, Prasar Bharati has opened the doors of All India Radio to private players under a newly rolled-out content framework. The initiative, titled Notice Inviting Programme Proposals (NIPP), marks a significant shift in how the public broadcaster approaches programming moving from a largely in-house model to a more collaborative, market-aligned ecosystem. Issued by Akashvani’s Directorate General in April 2026, the policy invites private producers, content owners and aggregators to pitch programmes across formats, from radio dramas and documentaries to quiz shows, storytelling and music-led content.
At the heart of the framework lies a three-pronged participation model designed to balance creative freedom with commercial viability. The most prominent route is revenue sharing, where advertising and sponsorship income generated by a programme is split between the producer and the broadcaster. The structure tilts in favour of creators offering a 70:30 split when producers bring in advertising, and 65:35 when monetisation is handled by Prasar Bharati.
Alongside this sits the sponsored model, where producers fully fund and monetise their content, subject to compliance with advertising norms and the AIR Broadcast Code. For those less commercially inclined, a gratis route allows content to be submitted free of cost, with Prasar Bharati retaining all monetisation rights effectively turning the platform into a national distribution channel for diverse voices.
The move comes as legacy media grapples with intensifying competition from private FM networks, streaming platforms and digital audio ecosystems. By repositioning AIR as both a public service broadcaster and a content marketplace, Prasar Bharati appears to be recalibrating its role in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
Importantly, the framework does not dilute editorial control. All submissions must adhere to the AIR Broadcast Code, and proposals are evaluated through a layered process that weighs storytelling quality, production capability, audience appeal and revenue potential. Only proposals crossing a defined threshold move forward, signalling that while access has widened, the bar remains firmly in place.
Operational discipline is another cornerstone of the policy. Producers are required to maintain broadcast-ready content, deliver episode banks in advance and navigate a structured approval process. Crucially, all production costs are borne by the content provider, reinforcing Prasar Bharati’s positioning as a distribution and oversight platform rather than a commissioning entity.
What elevates the initiative further is its scale. The framework spans multiple clusters and stations across India, covering both metro and regional markets, with specific language mandates and submission channels. This not only expands the content pipeline but also deepens linguistic and cultural representation, an area where AIR has historically held an advantage.
In effect, NIPP signals a quiet but meaningful transformation. AIR is no longer just broadcasting to the nation, it is inviting the nation to broadcast with it, blending legacy reach with contemporary content economics in a bid to stay relevant in an increasingly fragmented audio universe.
