Pending VOA Hindi closure upsets fans

Posted By: RnM Team 11 Sep 08 11:39 IST

MUMBAI: The impending closure of Voice of America's Hindi service on 30 September appears to upset loyal listeners, particularly from the country's Hindi belt, who have been tuned into the service for years now. The services's Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) has announced that the VoA Hindi radio service will be terminated from the end of this month, a move that has also stunned its stringers and correspondents based in India. Rajasthan based J Singh, who contributes to the Hindi service of Voice of America says, "Ideally, VOA should have increased the hour slots as it has huge listenership for its cultural and regional news.” VoA's Arab radio service, Alhurra and Sawa that rely more on popular music and entertainment are flourishing at the cost of reduced Hindi service timings, point out sources. VoA is currently available as an one hour slot from 9.30 pm on the shortwave. Says Singh, “It was a platform for listeners all over the globe to ask questions and get replies to their queries. Apparently, the radio station has lost about 30 per cent listenership, when the morning time slot (6 to 6.30 am) was removed." VoA's listeners are mainly concentrated in the Hindi belt, in areas where the television and internet has not flourished much. Chabbra based regular VoA listener Hiralal Soni says, “It was the only way to be internationally connected for many remote areas and shutting the services would be a drawback for these listeners.”

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