BBC announces all time record global audience

The BBC's global reach increased by 11% year on year in 2020 to 468.2m people a week - the highest number ever.

BBC News accounts for 438.4m of the total with an annual increase of 13%. Digital platforms are key to the success, with an increase of 53% in BBC News users. A total of 151m users now access BBC News digitally according the annual Global Audience Measure which measures how many individuals the BBC reached weekly with its news and entertainment content in the year 2019/20.

Tony Hall, BBC Director-General, says: "We are without question one of Britain's strongest and best-known brands, synonymous with quality and accuracy worldwide. Our international news services rank first for trust and reliability and the World Service remains a beacon of democratic values. Independent research shows that there is an exceptionally high correlation between places where people are aware of the BBC and places where people think positively about the UK. More than that, the BBC helps UK trade. This has perhaps never been more important. The UK will forge a new relationship with the world in the decade ahead, built on an ambitious vision of 'Global Britain'. Success will mean drawing on all our considerable international assets, and that means unleashing the full global potential of the BBC."

In late March 2020, as the Covid-19 virus spread and trusted sources of information were in demand, BBC News recorded the highest reach of any international media organisation in the world with 310m people accessing coverage across 42 languages.

BBC global content is increasingly popular on global platforms like Youtube with a 129% increase in audiences to 47m a week - overtaking Facebook with a 31% increase to 43m. Twitter reach has doubled to 6m and Instagram also reaches 6m weekly.

Other highlights of the 2020 Global Audience Measure:

- BBC World News channel made significant gains to reach 112m - with growth in the Americas at 50%.  

- BBC World Service languages up 13% to 292.1m with a big uptick in digital engagement among audiences aged 15-24 who now make up a third of the total. BBC News Hindi is now the second most popular service with 25m - behind Arabic with 42m (+67%). BBC Chinese saw an increase of 141%, Russian is up 32% and BBC Mundo 40%. Other big percentage increases include Serbian (+327%), Yoruba (+166%) and Afaan Oromoo (+143%).

- BBC Studios increased reach by 5.8m to 49.1m up 13%.

- BBC World Service English audiences up by 8% to 97m. The Global News Podcast remains the BBC's most popular with audiences approaching 1m a week. Italy contributed 1.4m new listeners on DAB radio.

- BBC Media Action - the BBC's international charity that helps to strengthen governance, improve people's health and humanitarian response - saw an increase in audience of 4m to 18m.

New content funded by the UK government's World 2020 initiative attracted new audiences, with Sport Africa - including extensive Premier League coverage; Africa Eye with groundbreaking investigative journalism; and What's New for young African audiences performing particularly well.  

The top 10 countries by BBC News audience are:

India - 60,400,000

United States - 49,500,000

Nigeria - 37,200,000

Kenya - 14,600,000

Tanzania -14,000,000

Bangladesh - 11,900,000

Afghanistan - 11,400,000

Iran - 11,300,000

Canada - 9,700,000

Pakistan - 9,700,000

The Global Audience Measure is an annual update of how many people are consuming the BBC weekly for all services in all countries across all platforms (television, radio, website and social media). Key to this is de-duplication i.e. ensuring that a person who consumes multiple BBC services or platforms or on multiple devices is not counted many times in the top level totals, which means those totals are often not the sums of their constituent parts.

(Press Release)

BBC Hindi shortwave broadcasts to go off air on 31st Jan

BBC Hindi announced on 13th Dec, 2019 that all shortwave broadcasts will be off air by 31st Jan, 2020 and going forward focus will be on digital.

Last broadcast of BBC Hindi morning program 'Namaskar Bharat' at 0100 UTC (0630 IST) will be on 27th December, 2019.

Similarly last evening transmission of BBC Hindi at 1400 UTC (1930 IST) will be on 31st January, 2020.

BBC Hindi will continue investing in newer digital platforms.

BBC World Service extends shortwave broadcasts in Hindi, English & Urdu

The Director of the BBC World Service, Jamie Angus, says: "The provision of independent and trusted news in places of conflict and tension is one of the core purposes of the World Service.

"Given the shutdown of digital services and phone lines in the Kashmir region, it's right for us to try and increase the provision of news on our short wave radio services. Audiences in both India and Pakistan trust the BBC to speak with an independent voice, and we know that our reporting through several moments of crisis this year has been popular and valued by audiences who turn to us when tensions are highest."

BBC News Hindi radio output (9515 and 11995 kHz) will be extended by 30 minutes from Friday 16 August. The full one-hour news programme will be on air from 7.30pm to 8.30pm local time.

On Monday 19 August, BBC News Urdu will launch a 15-minute daily programme, Neemroz. Broadcast at 12.30pm local time on 15310kHz and 13650kHz, the programme will focus on news coming from Kashmir and the developments around the issue, and include global news roundup tailored for audiences in Kashmir.

BBC World Service English broadcasts (11795kHz, 9670kHz, 9580kHz, 7345kHz, 6040kHz) will be expanded, with the morning programming extended by an hour, ending at 8.30am local time; and the afternoon and evening programming starting an hour earlier, at 4.30pm local time.

The shutdown has left people with very few options for accessing news at this time. However, news services from the BBC continue to be available in the region - through shortwave radio transmissions in English, Urdu, Hindi, Dari and Pashto. As well as providing an important source of news to the region, the South Asian language services have brought added depth to the BBC's coverage of the Kashmir story.

The recent introduction of four new languages services for India - Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi and Telugu, following additional investment from the UK Government - has enabled the BBC to offer a wider portfolio of languages and distribution methods to a region that is geographically diverse as well as politically tense. This year's Global Audience Measure for the BBC showed that India is now the World Service's largest market, with a weekly audience of 50m.

(BBC Press Release)

BBC HINDI A18

BBC HINDI A18

0100-0130 UTC (6.30-7.00 AM IST)

1413  0100 0130 smtwtfs BBC A SEELA     800 80  Hindi 41NW MF
6155  0100 0130 smtwtfs BBC DHABAYYA    250 75  Hindi 41N,42SW HR 4/2/.5
7300  0100 0130 smtwtfs BBC DHABAYYA    250 70  Hindi 41N,42SW HR 2/2/0.5
9510  0100 0130 smtwtfs BBC TASHKENT HF 100 141 Hindi 41N,42SW HR 4/4/1.0
11995 0100 0130 smtwtfs BBC KRANJI      250 315 Hindi 41N,42SW HR 4/2/.8

1400-1430 UTC (7.30-8.00 PM IST)

1413  1400 1430 smtwtfs BBC A SEELA     800 80  Hindi 41NW MF
7565  1400 1430 smtwtfs BBC TASHKENT HF 100 141 Hindi 41N,42SW HR 4/4/1.0
9460  1400 1430 smtwtfs BBC A SEELA     250 63  Hindi 41N,42SW HR 2/3/.5
9500  1430 1500 s..wtfs FEC TASHKENT HF 100 131 Hindi 41N HR 4/4/1.0
9510  1400 1430 smtwtfs BBC KRANJI      250 320 Hindi 41N,42SW HR 2/2/.8
11795 1400 1430 smtwtfs BBC KRANJI      250 315 Hindi 41N,42SW HR 2/2/.8

----

Alokesh Gupta

New Delhi

BBC HINDI B17

BBC HINDI B17

(Effective 29th October 2017 to 24th March 2018)

UTC   UTC FREQ DAYS     SITE    PWR AZI

START END

----------------------------------------

0059 0120 6155  smtwtfs TASHKENT   100 163

0100 0130 5875  smtwtfs TASHKENT   100 141

0100 0130 7430  smtwtfs WOOFFERTON 300 86

0100 0130 7565  smtwtfs SOFIA      250 90

0100 0130 11995 smtwtfs KRANJI     250 315

0100 0130 1413  smtwtfs A SEELA    800 80

1400 1430 5875  smtwtfs TASHKENT   100 141

1400 1430 9510  smtwtfs KRANJI     250 320

1400 1430 9540  smtwtfs A SEELA    250 60

1400 1430 11945 smtwtfs KRANJI     250 315

1400 1430 1413  smtwtfs A SEELA    800 80

1430 1500 9540  s..wtfs TASHKENT   100 131

1530 1600 7565  smtwtfs TASHKENT   100 163

(Alokesh Gupta)

BBC News begins huge India investment

BBC News today began a major expansion in India, launching news services in four Indian languages: Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi and Telugu - and relaunching a nightly TV news bulletin in Hindi, BBC Duniya, to be broadcast on India News.

The new services are available online and on social media, with a Telugu TV bulletin, BBC Prapancham, also starting tonight. This will be broadcast on Eenadu TV Andhra Pradesh and Eenadu TV Telangana.

This forms part of a significant BBC investment in India, including an expanded news bureau in Delhi with 2 new TV studios. The Delhi bureau is now the BBC's largest outside the UK. It will become a video, TV and digital content production hub for the whole of South Asia.

This follows a huge talent drive in India, with the BBC recruiting more than 150 new journalistic staff from across the country.

Director-General of the BBC, Tony Hall, is in India for the launch of the services. Speaking from Delhi, where he was officially opening the BBC Bureau, he says: "I'm delighted to be in India to mark such a significant milestone for the BBC. For decades, audiences in India have trusted the BBC to bring them impartial, independent news, and today millions more have the chance to access the BBC in their own languages.

"We know the BBC is already held in great regard and affection across India, and we want to bring BBC News to new audiences, particularly the next generation of news consumers. We've recruited amazingly talented new journalists from across India, and it's been an honour to meet many of them today.

"I'm also pleased the BBC is working with new TV partners in India News and Eenadu TV."

K.Bapineedu, CEO of Eenadu TV Network, says: "The BBC has established its brand name as a credible news channel across the globe. The initiative from the BBC, to produce international stories with a global perspective in the Telugu language and to be broadcast on the ETV Network, will add value to our existing endeavour of reaching the Telugu audience with the highest reach and authenticity."

Kartikeya Sharma, Founder and Promoter of iTV Network, the owner and operator of India News, says: "The BBC is known for its well-researched and unbiased content, which will now reach our viewers in a language and format they can easily comprehend. India News is acknowledged as a channel that captures the pulse of the nation and promotes a brand of direct and responsible news coverage. With the coming together of the two, our viewers can look forward to getting a global perspective on stories of international significance from networks they can trust."

BBC News already broadcasts to 28m people in Bengali, Hindi, Tamil and Urdu, as well as English.

The investment in India comes as part of the BBC World Service's biggest expansion since the 1940s, made possible by £291m investment from the UK Government. The BBC has already launched news in Pidgin, Afaan Oromo, Amharic, Tigrinya and Korean, with services in Yoruba, Igbo and Serbian to follow.

BBC Duniya is broadcast Monday-Friday at 1800 IST on India News. BBC Prapancham is broadcast Monday-Friday at 2230 IST on Eenadu TV Andhra Pradesh and Eenadu TV Telangana. Both bulletins will be fast-paced programmes giving audiences original journalism and a global perspective on the international and national stories of the day.

TV news bulletins in Marathi will be broadcast later this year, with Gujarati following next year.

Downloadable English language learning modules will also be available via our sites.

News in the four languages is also available on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

The new websites are available as follows:

https://www.bbc.com/marathi

https://www.bbc.com/telugu

https://www.bbc.com/punjabi

https://www.bbc.com/gujarati

Notes to Editors

The BBC attracts a weekly global audience of 346 million people to its international news services including BBC World Service, BBC World News television channel and bbc.com/news.

BBC World Service delivers news content around the world in English and more than 30 other languages, on radio, TV and digital, reaching a weekly audience of 269 million. As part of BBC World Service, BBC Learning English teaches English to global audiences. For more information, visit bbc.com/worldservice

(Press Release)

BBC Dunia launches on ETV and bbchindi.com

A new BBC Hindi TV news programme is launching on ETV network in India and on the BBC Hindi website bbchindi.com. The Monday-to-Friday global news programme BBC Dunia brings original BBC stories in Hindi, with a focus on international content that resonates with the Indian audience.

BBC Dunia is part of ETV's 21.00 news slot, ETV News with BBC. It goes on air at 21.20 across the ETV network - ETV Rajasthan, ETV Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand, ETV Bihar and Jharkhand, ETV Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, ETV Haryana and Himachal and ETV Urdu. The programme is also available on demand on bbchindi.com and the BBC Hindi channel on YouTube

Produced and presented from London, BBC Dunia is a fast-paced, dynamic 10-minute news programme with a special appeal to young viewers, delivering the BBC's take on global events of the day - be it politics, science and technology or culture and entertainment - and looking at how global events impact India and the wider region. Delivering world-class news coverage from the BBC, with exclusive BBC news features and original BBC pictures, the programme draws on the BBC's newsgathering presence across the world, bringing the viewers the BBC's insights and expertise.

BBC World Service Asia Editor, Juliana Iootty, says: "The launch of BBC Dunia is a major development for BBC World Service in the region and an excellent example of our commitment to Hindi-speaking audiences. Now with BBC Dunia, available from Monday to Friday, BBC Hindi will serve its TV audiences even better, hopefully becoming essential viewing for anyone who wants to keep abreast of the world developments with the BBC, in Hindi."

BBC Hindi Editor, Nidheesh Tyagi, adds: "The BBC teams in London and Delhi have worked hard to deliver BBC Dunia to our audiences in India - via ETV - and anywhere else in the world, via bbchindi.com and our YouTube channel. Based on our understanding of our audiences - especially younger ones - we have created a format with pace that will help us give them everything they need to know about the world around them. We all hope they will join us for this dynamic and comprehensive roundup of key news stories of the day on ETV and other platforms of their choice."

Head of Business Development, Asia & the Pacific Region, BBC World Service, Indu Shekhar Sinha, says: "The launch of BBC Dunia means major expansion of the BBC Hindi TV offer in India. It builds on our partnership with ETV, which for almost three years brought our weekly TV news programme to millions of viewers, further expanding its audience base in India."

Jagdish Chandra, Head ETV News Network, comments: "ETV is a leader in regional news space in the country, and this tie-up with BBC has added one more feather in its cap. Now ETV viewers across the country will get an international window in the form of BBC Dunia. This ETV BBC fusion will prove a boon for the viewers who like to watch news which really matters to them."

Rajesh Raina, Group Editor, ETV News, adds: "We are proud to have this association with BBC which has no parallel as a credible international media organization. BBC Dunia, a ten-minute news capsule direct from BBC London studios on ETV channels, will add more fragrance and colour to our bouquet of news programmes. This will also give platform to BBC to reach the grassroots level in India through ETV which is having the largest news network in the country."

BBC Hindi is available online, on mobiles, TV and radio. BBC Hindi is part of BBC World Service.

BBC Hindi delivers content for online, mobile, TV and radio platforms. The mobile-first site bbchindi.com offers Indian, regional and international news. BBC Hindi also connects with its audiences via social-networking channels such as Facebook where it has over 3.6 million followers (September 2015) and Twitter. BBC Hindi radio is available on shortwave, medium wave, FM and via mobiles. The bbchindi.com mobile site can be accessed across all mobile operators and via the BBC Hindi apps developed for Android smartphones and Nokia's Series 40 devices. BBC Hindi content is also available on mobile news aggregator Dailyhunt and chat apps LINE and WeChat.

BBC World Service delivers news content around the world in English and 28 other language services, on radio, TV and digital, reaching a weekly audience of 210 million. As part of BBC World Service, BBC Learning English teaches English to global audiences. The BBC attracts a weekly global news audience of 283 million people to its international news services including BBC World Service, BBC World News television channel and bbc.com/news.

(Press Release) 

BBC Hindi celebrates 75 years

BBC Hindi is celebrating 75 years


More info at :



http://www.bbc.co.uk/hindi/india/2015/05/150511_bbcat75_nidheesh_rp.shtml?ocid=socialflow_facebook





Audio files of selected news reports during last 75 years ( in Hindi)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/hindi/india/2015/05/150509_bbchindi75years_broadcasting_journey_pk

Peter Horrocks speech to the Observer Research Foundation, Delhi

How India is leading the way in BBC innovation - Peter Horrocks speech to the Observer Research Foundation, Delhi

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/speeches/2014/peter-horrocks-delhi

 

excerpt...

 

In recent years the challenges in reaching global audiences have been intensifying. The platform on which BBC World Service historically was strongest - shortwave radio – has come under great pressure as FM radio, TV and mobile phones offer audiences compelling alternatives. In India, BBC Hindi is still available on shortwave and achieves an audience of 5.5 million which the BBC greatly treasures, but that audience has been declining fast as audiences switch to more audible radio and other platforms like TV.

BBC Hindi now available on Line instant messaging

As part of its 'mobile-first' strategy, BBC Hindi is making its content available on smartphone instant messaging platform LINE – one of the world's top five chat apps. By searching for the username BBC Hindi, and adding the account, or by subscribing to BBC Hindi in the Official Accounts section, Hindi-speaking LINE users can receive the latest news from BBC Hindi via text, graphics, short video clips and audio.

One of the fastest growing Hindi news websites, bbchindi.com has pioneered the use of the instant-messaging platform among Hindi-language news providers. The launch of the BBC Hindi LINE app follows the recent launch on LINE of the BBC News account. LINE has 560 million registered users globally and over 30 million registered users in India.

Earlier this year, the BBC conducted successful trials in India with other instant-messaging apps. Audiences have shown an appetite for such services, and the bbchindi.com website now operates on the 'mobile-first' basis, delivering mobile-friendly content that users will want to share.

BBC Hindi Digital Editor, Rajesh Priyadarshi, says: "The Indian market has become the new driver of digital growth, and social media is teeming with activity. Chat apps are opening new windows of opportunity and by making our content available via LINE we are tapping into vast numbers of users who will welcome access to BBC journalism in a digitally friendly fashion."

BBC World Service Head of Business Development, Asia Pacific, Indu Shekhar Sinha adds: "Chat apps are redefining the rules of engagement. As one of the world's most trusted broadcasters, BBC World Service has always been keen to engage with audiences on their preferred media platforms. Thanks to this collaboration with LINE, our presence on the Indian mobile market will be further reinforced."

LINE spokesperson, Abhijit Mishra, says: "LINE is an integrated mobile platform committed to building strong content partnerships to provide relevant and meaningful information to our users. Our alliance with BBC Hindi official account will amplify the rich user-experience on LINE and provide BBC Hindi with a wide reach to the Indian audience."

As part of BBC World Service, BBC Hindi adds to the BBC's expanding social-media presence. BBC Hindi has more than 2.6 million followers on Facebook. BBC News is the most shared news brand on Twitter and has more than 40 million Facebook page 'Likes' worldwide.

For more information please contact:

BBC World Service Group Communications - Lala Najafova lala.najafova@bbc.co.uk

Notes for editors

BBC Hindi delivers content for online, mobile, TV and radio platforms. Hindi-speakers across the world can access the BBC Hindi content via the news site bbchindi.com. The 'mobile first' website can be accessed via the mobile portals of Vodafone, Reliance, Aircel, Tata Do Co Mo, Tata Indicom, Idea and Loop Mobile, and via the BBC Hindi apps developed for Android smartphones and Nokia's Series 40 devices. The BBC Hindi weekly TV news programme, Global India, is broadcast by the ETV network in India where it has a weekly audience of around 6 million. BBC's special radio output for India's FM market, available on regional FM stations, includes infotainment updates in Hindi and a portfolio of weekly programmes.

BBC World Service is an international multimedia broadcaster delivering a wide range of language and regional services on radio, TV, online and via wireless handheld devices. BBC World Service uses multiple platforms to reach its weekly audience of over 191 million globally. The BBC attracts a weekly global audience of 265 million people to its international news services including BBC World Service, BBC World News television channel and bbc.com/news. 

BBC to drop Hindi & Urdu on shortwave ?

Going by the indication BBC is surely going to drop Hindi & Urdu shortwave transmissions by the end of October'13 (or end of March 2014 ?).

Here's an informative article by Manu Moudgil which talks about major policy shift by BBC, few other articles appeared earlier also in the regional press. As per sources same situation pertains with Urdu service.

More at ...... http://tinyurl.com/ctbaal2

DRM Logs - 25th Nov 2012

BBC English

2012-11-24 1633 Z 1 h 25 m 28N/77E 5845 kHz #BBCWorldService_DRM #DR111 21.1 dB avg SNR 99.5 % audio #drmlog

BBC Hindi

2012-11-25 1403 Z 0 h 28 m 28N/77E 5845kHz #BBCWorldService_DRM #DR111 20.9 dB avg SNR 99.9 % audio #drmlog

All India Radio

2012-11-25 0857 Z 2 h 13 m 28N/77E 6100 kHz #VIVIDHBHARTI_DRM #DR111 14.9 dB avg SNR 95.7 % audio #drmlog #AkashvaniAIR

All India Radio

2012-11-25 1114 Z 1 h 00 m 28N/77E 6100 kHz #VIVIDHBHARTI_DRM #DR111 14.0 dB avg SNR 90.7 % audio #drmlog #AkashvaniAIR

BBC Hindi launches Global India on ETV

BBC World Service and ETV Network have announced the launch of the BBC Hindi TV programme, Global India, on five channels of ETV, India's leading regional network across the country's Hindi-speaking states.

From Friday 2 November, the BBC's brand-new TV programme in Hindi will air weekly at prime time on ETV Bihar / Jharkhand, ETV Uttar Pradesh / Uttrakhand, ETV Rajasthan, ETV Madhya Pradesh / Chhattisgarh and ETV Urdu.

With BBC Hindi's Rupa Jha as its lead presenter, Global India is a weekly 30-minute magazine-style show which brings alive the best of the BBC journalism from across the world, focusing on news and

developments that resonate with the Indian audience. Ranging from hard news to human-interest stories, culture and technology, the show aims to connect with millions of Hindi-speaking audiences through the expansive reach of ETV channels.

ETV Network, a leader in India's Hindi regional belt, especially with channels across ETV HSM as well as ETV Urdu, has been reaching out to viewers from urban to semi-urban and rural areas. Being an essential part of the viewer's daily TV experience, the network will form the perfect partner for BBC Hindi to engage with a much larger audience base in India.

Rupa Jha says: "I am thrilled to front our new TV programme. Showcasing the best of BBC journalism, Global India will deliver original BBC stories as they are lived by our journalists across the world. After years of being part of the BBC Hindi radio and online team, I am really looking forward to the excitement of connecting with our audiences on TV."

BBC Hindi has been a household name in India, known and respected for its objective and comprehensive reporting – on radio, online and via mobile phones. Commenting on the service's move to TV broadcasting, BBC World Service Head of Journalism, Nikki Clarke, says: "This is a great development for the BBC in India, showing our commitment to our Hindi-speaking audiences. With this expansion on television, BBC Hindi builds on the strength of the BBC as a news brand in India. The editorial thrust of Global India reflects the strong interest in stories from around the world that are important for India and are brought alive by the BBC's world-renowned newsgathering operation.''

BBC World Service Head of Business Development - Asia Pacific, Indu Shekhar Sinha, adds: "There have been huge changes in the way Hindi-speaking audiences consume our content, and as we work to adjust our distribution footprint to better serve them, the launch of Global India signals the fact that BBC Hindi is expanding in India's media market. We are excited to be partnering with the ETV network to bring this dynamic new programme to millions of viewers."

Commenting on the partnership with BBC Hindi, a spokesperson from ETV Network says: "ETV is an integral part of the regional audiences across the country, providing them with rich infotainment across languages. For years, ETV HSM channels and ETV Urdu have penetrated across the length and breadth of the country to provide a perfect blend of reach and viewers' loyalty. Global India, created by BBC Hindi, will be a unique proposition for viewers of the ETV network across India, as it will share new, fresh and relevant content, further strengthening our commitment as a responsible news brand in the country. The content we offer through our range of channels is extremely attractive and relevant to our audiences. The ETV news bureau provides fast and reliable news to its viewers, and with BBC Hindi bringing in their international expertise through Global India, it will add further variety to the existing content of ETV. This new programme will also give our viewers an opportunity to meet Indians spread across the world."

Global India will be broadcast every Friday on five channels of the ETV network at 8pm on ETV Bihar / Jharkhand and ETV Uttar Pradesh / Uttrakhand; and at 6pm on ETV Rajasthan, ETV Madhya Pradesh / Chhattisgarh and ETV Urdu. It will be repeated on Saturdays at 8.30pm on ETV Urdu, and at 9.30pm on all the other channels. It will be repeated on Sundays at 11.30am in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar at 9.30am in Rajasthan and at 1pm on ETV Urdu.

 

(BBC Press Release)

Amit Baruah leaves BBC Hindi

Amit Baruah, head of BBC Hindi & South Asia Hub editor, has decided to leave the BBC after working for almost three years, initially as Head of BBC Hindi and then with the added responsibility as South Asia Hub Editor, his last day will be 30th June 2012.

BBC Hindi additional txn's re-instated !

As of 27th March 2012, BBC Hindi txns which were cut back on 31st March 2011 have been re-instated after one year !

Schedule :

0100-0130 UTC – 1413, 9440, 9915, 11995, 15510 kHz

0230-0300 UTC – 1413, 9410, 11975, 15510, 17510 kHz

1400-1430 UTC – 1413, 7565, 9410, 9510, 11795, 15470 kHz (ex 1400-1500 UTC)

1600-1630 UTC – 1413, 7565, 9605, 9675, 13695, 15710 kHz

BBC Hindi to re-instate morning txn's

BBC Hindi is going to re-instate morning SW txn's at 0100 UTC & 0230 UTC, Program titled "Namaskar Bharat" will start on 27th March 2012. Neil Curry, Head of business development, Asia Pacific region will be in India to see the start of morning txn.

BBC Hindi adds news txn from 1st Dec 2011

BBC Hindi plans to add new txn at 0100 UTC from 1st Dec 2011 :

5980 from Cyprus 97 degrees 250kW
6165 from Oman 60 degrees 250kW
11995 from Singapore 320 degrees 250kW
13675 from Thailand 280 degrees 250kW
15510 from Thailand 305 degrees 250kW

BBC Hindi initiates new series to unite artistes from India and Pakistan

RnM Team 02 Aug 11 18:09 IST
MUMBAI: BBC Hindi will bring together musicians from India and Pakistan on its special series 'Friendship beyond Borders'. The series will be broadcasted via partnered FM station across India from 2-7 August.Friendship beyond Borders features artistes such as Shafqat Amanat Ali, Arif Lohar, Ali Azmat, Rekha Bharadwaj, Salim-Sulaiman and Mohit Chauhan conversing on music, mutual understanding and peace.The BBC Hindi shortwave will re-broadcast the series on 15 August, and the hindi website will feature special stories based on the series.

Full story at :
http://www.radioandmusic.com/content/editorial/news/bbc-hindi-initiates-new-series-unite-artistes-indian-and-pakistan

BBC World Service's Hindi short-wave service saved from closure

Foreign secretary agrees to give an extra £2.2m annually for three years from the Foreign Office budget

The BBC World Service's Hindi short-wave broadcasts have been saved from the axe after the foreign secretary, William Hague, agreed to give extra money to the highly regarded international broadcaster.

Related stories :

http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=47341&c=1

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/8591312/BBC-World-Service-receives-2.2m-funding-boost.html

More at :
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jun/22/bbc-world-service-hindi

(Thanks to Naleen Kumar for the links)

BBC will restart morning Hindi broadcast

BBC Hindi will survive funding cuts: Patten

From Prasun Sonwalkar Oxford, Jun 17 (PTI) Terming the BBC Hindi Service as "very important", Lord Chris Patten, chairman of the BBC Trust and chancellor of the University of Oxford, today said the service will survive the major funding cuts that had severely affected its future.Patten, who recently took over as chairman of the BBC Trust, told PTI here that due to the importance of the Hindi Service and increasingly deeper relations India, he was making all efforts to ensure its survival amidst funding cuts.

Read the PTI story here :
http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/bbc-hindi-will-survive-funding-cuts-patten/729400.html

(Naleen Kumar)