DTH channels being launched by September to impart education: Javadekar

Even as there is little possibility of Gyan Darshan getting revived on the television screen, 32 Direct to Home (DTH) Television Channels are to be used for providing high quality educational content to all teachers, students and citizens across the country interested in lifelong learning. The 32 channels are proposed to be launched before September 2016. Initially the programmes will be in English but with the passage of time the programmes will be launched in regional languages as well. Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar told the Lok Sabha today that the Government has approved a project to launch the ‘SWAYAM Prabha.' There will be new content of four hours every day, which would be telecast six times a day allowing the student to choose the time of his/her convenience.

The main features of SWAYAM Prabha would be curriculum based course contents covering diverse disciplines such as arts, science, commerce, performing arts, social sciences and humanities subjects, engineering, technology, law, medicine, agriculture etc. It would also cover all level of education: School education, undergraduate, postgraduate, engineering, out of school children, vocational courses and teacher training. Gyan Darshan and Gyan Vani had been stopped on Doordarshan and All India Radio respectively when the Indira Gandhi National Open University failed to clear huge dues to the pubcaster for these channels. However, these channels were later launched on the web, which was felt to be a bad alternative as the majority did not have access to internet. IGNOU owed more than Rs 21.6 crore to All India Radio when it was shut on 30 September after the university failed to pay the outstanding dues for three years (for their 37 stations).

Gyan Darshan had been stopped even earlier in the beginning of 2014. It was also learnt by indiantelevision.com that IGNOU had applied to WPC for a licence to run television channels, but had been refused by the Department of Telecom which had told them that only Doordarshan can apply for such a channel. DD had refused to apply for the channel on behalf of IGNOU in view of the report by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India which bars allotment of licences to government bodies to start their own channels.