What began enthusiastically eleven years back came to a nought on a cold December afternoon in 2021 and SCOTRWA's efforts to obtain a license for a community radio station were shelved for good. The community radio licensing process proved to be time consuming, expensive and frustrating as this letter to the PMO elucidates. It is totally opposite of the spirit of community radio. Supreme Court ruling of 1995 asserts that radio waves/ frequencies are public property. Community radio aspirants need to remember that there is a good chance of getting lost in the labyrinth of paperwork, leg work and screening committee procedures.
Shri. Narendra Modi,
Prime Minister of India,
Prime Minister's
Office; South Block,
New Delhi,
110011.
Hyderabad,
10th February, 2022
Sir,
Sub:
Urgent Need for Radical Administrative Reforms
I.
Since there is no responsive national
body to which the citizens can send their suggestions for administrative
reforms, I am forced to disturb you to seek your attention. I want to bring to
your attention the latest and specific instance of systemic failure of
administrative procedures in time-bound decision-making, despite your desire
and attempts towards more 'ease of doing business' with the Administration.
Mechanisms
of checks and balances are envisaged in our Constitution. Since one cannot
depend upon the same Administration to reform itself, there may be three
democratic approaches possible for your consideration : i) Any effective reform
might have to be backed by an Ordinance or a legislative measure in order to
make the Administration to stand the test of respect for the ‘ease of living’
of their real employers. Or ii) Rigorous implementation of the Citizens Charter
in each department and in each Board, Directorate or Corporation and to make
the Charter justiciable. Or iii) Hire eminent managers and auditors from among the
public to evaluate the performance of each officer in each scheme, programme or
project or mission and see that the career orientation of the officer depends
on the evaluation. Or iv) to carry out obligatory Social Audit by the stakeholders,
academicians and experts and allow them to make it public.
The
present case is being illustrated to you, not to seek any personal relief, nor
to find fault with any particular officer, but only to prove that it is
imperative that the philosophy and system of administering has to change so as
become more efficient and performing.
II.
The following is the latest instance:
In
2009, if not earlier, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting or the
Minister concerned himself has announced the opening up of the FM Radio channel
to the public and called for proposals from NGOs, CSOs and Educational
institutions to get permission to establish Community Radio Stations. On
10-11-2010 an application in 7 copies is filed by the Standing Committee of
Tarnaka Resident Welfare Associations (SCOTRWA) to the Secretary, Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting. Finally, the reply letter as a decision closing
the matter dated the 20th December 2021 is communicated to us during
the Prashasan Saptah on 25th December which is a Good Governance
Day. What happened during these 11 years is a tragic story of tremendous
wastage of human energies, efforts, time and tax-payer’s money. And it is an
avoidable national loss.
During
this long period, we have accumulated a file of more than 200 pages of
correspondence and reports. SCOTRWA has formed 20 to 30 committees and groups
of around a hundred enthusiastic volunteers, including subject experts. They
might have participated in discussions for about a thousand man-hours while spending
their own money on commutation. Several pamphlets are printed. The volunteers
are trained to prepare the subject materials for broadcasting. Newspapers wrote
and television channels interviewed the organisers and about 35
newspaper-cuttings are lying with us. The journalists highlighted the unique
nature of this project in which an urban community would use this radio station
to facilitate the 'ease of living' of its residents, operating as a channel of
communication and information to solve the problems of every day. The Broadcast
Engineering Consultants India Ltd. was consulted and it made 2 trips from
Bengaluru to Hyderabad to identify the suitable location as well as for cost
estimates. An office place to set up the studio imminently was hired for a
couple of years. It was all because we have received a Letter of Intent from
the Department. A Survey was carried out across the surrounding area of 10 km.
There were three interactions with the Screening Committee of high officials.
There were 2 visits of the SCOTRWA representatives to the concerned officials.
Once, we were asked to rectify the coordinates of the wavelengths. The desk
officer had once informed that the entire file was missing and a fresh set of
documents re-inserted in the file. It was also told some other time, as
friendly advice that the file was outdated and it would be better to start all
over again with a new name of the applicant, which was done in 2019. From Room
no.116 in Shastri Bhawan, a person from a Facilitation Centre made a few
courtesy telephone calls, now and then, to enquire from us about the status of
the file, which fact used to make us wonder about the real purpose of the call.
A few regional seminars are held in some cities with the stakeholders in which
higher officials from ND have been participating. The latest online meeting in
which our representative participated took place on December 21, the month in
which we have received the letter of rejection. Financial assistance to some
NGOs was vaguely mentioned but never clarified. We presumed that it would be
another procedure to be launched, still at a later stage. Occasionally,
whenever we came across other applicants from other states, some said that they
engaged consultants to facilitate the procedures.
Several
Union Ministers who came across this project wrote letters of support to the
Ministry concerned appreciating the mission of the Radio: Mr. Kapil Sibal, Mr.
Prakash Javadekar, Mr. Jaipal Reddy, Mr. Ravi Shanker Prasad, Mr. Dattatreya,
etc. Thus, this long period of
indecision and waiting for action is too much and unnatural to any human
endeavour, other than to a government body. The rejection in our case came in
fact as a relief to us, since we are not anymore in a position to raise funds
from the public.
III.
Previously, I had another experience in
2000, where it took 2 or 3 years of correspondence, consisting of 30 to 40
letters from and to SCOTRWA to get a registration number (R.N.I.) to our
'Tarnaka Times' from the Registrar of Newspapers belonging to the Information
& Broadcasting department. In a similar situation and need, an active
citizen took the trouble of making a trip to New Delhi and stayed in AP Bhawan
in Ashoka Road, where he hired a 'consultant' and got the certificate of
registration Number delivered in Hyderabad by post within 15 days. I am still
keeping all the documents of the previous case as well as that of the latest
one for verification, while enclosing a few copies to establish the
authenticity of the latest issue.
We,
therefore, urge you, being our much-esteemed Prime Minister to venture to
implement concretely your much acclaimed mission of 'Less Government and More
Governance' by radical administrative reforms, during your tenure. It would be
a landmark in the history of modernising India.
With
my best regards,
Rao
V.B.J. Chelikani,
A former associate of UNESCO, Paris.
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