Community Radio will Revolutionize Social Interactions - Gaurav Anand

Community radio is a type of radio service that caters to the interests of a certain group, broadcasting material that is popular to a local audience through participatory based knowledge sharing. The main difference between community radio and state-owned radio is the concept of community ownership. This empowers the community to use this radio for community benefits like, poverty eradication, reducing gender disparities, health, hygiene etc. The community radio concept has no repressive one-way communication, but a two-way communication which provides interactivity among the members of the rural community. The concept is truly from the people, by the people, and for the people. The concept will be more interesting if a community radio network could be established. This concept from community based development approach meets the development in an independent and sustainable way. Here people in the remote village will be empowered through information or knowledge by the community radio concept. The time has come that the potential of this popular, accessible, low-cost, medium of communication should be linked with the national development objectives. The participation must be ensured at every level in production and management. There is also need to create farm broadcasting units at common gathering in the village where important issues can be discussed for the content of the community broadcasting. Broadcasting experts, extension workers, Local panchayat members and the villagers as a whole can meet and share their ideas and opinions. These units would then distribute the content to the community stations to reach finally to the end users.