HISTORY OF

TELEVISION: India
SAY3B
Rebekah Julianne Jesudason
Early Beginings
• Television was introduced in India on September 15,
1959 in Delhi on an experimental basis.
• It came to India 20 years after British Broadcasting
Corporation (BBC) began the first television service
of the world in 1936.
• It was with the help provided by UNESCO that it all
started. Its aim was to promote social education and
general awareness.
• The programmes were broadcast twice a week for an
hour a day on such topics as community health,
citizens’ duties and rights, and traffic and road
sense.
Indira Gandhi’s contribution
• It was not until Mrs.Indira
Gandhi was in charge of
the Information and
Broadcasting Ministry that
television was
commissioned as a regular
daily service from 15th
August 1965.
• Now television transmitters
carry Doordarshan signals
to almost three fourth of
the country's population.
Birth of Doordarshan
• Doordarshan, literally means ‘a glimpse of
all afar’
• The experiment became a service in 1965,
when Doordarshan began beaming signals
to reach television sets in country’s capital,
New Delhi.
• By 1972, services were extended to Mumbai
and Amritsar and then on, to seven other
cities by 1975.
• All this time, it was part of the national
broadcaster, All India Radio.
• On April 1, 1976, it transited to become a
separate Department in the Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting, though still
serviced by All India Radio, especially for
its news.
The Expansion
• In 1961 the broadcasts were expanded to include a
school educational television project.
• The first major expansion of television in India
began in 1972, when a second television station was
opened in Bombay.
• This was followed by stations in Srinagar and
Amritsar (1973), and Calcutta, Madras and
Lucknow in 1975.1
• For the first 17 years, broadcasting of television
spread haltingly and transmission was in black and
white.
Seperation
• Another landmark came on April 1,1976 when, All
India Radio was bifurcated and Doordarshan was
made a separate department of the Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting,Government of
India.
• It was considered necessary for providingmore
specific attention to the growth of this medium in
thecountry.
• Doordarshan is headed by the Director General
who is assisted by four Additional Directors
Gene£ral and eight Deputy Directors General.
Colour Broadcast
• Infact, on August 15, 1982, Doordarshan started the
LIVE telecast in colour with the then Prime
Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi's Independence Day
Address, followed by the colour telecast of the 1982
9th Asian Games in Delhi.
• That historic day was indeed a red-letter day for
Doordarshan.
• It was the take off point for four different projects
- Colour telecasting, Micro-wave linkage, National-
net work programmes and operationalisation of
INSAT-1A.
Timings & objectives
• In 1982, the duration of National Programmes was for90 minutes
from 8.30 pm -10.00 pm.
• The objective of introducing National Programmes was
a) to promote National Integration, Communal harmony, family
welfare etc.,
b) to disseminate information of national and international events,
c) Promoting scientific temper
d) to project cultural heritage of different regions.
• From 16th January 1983 onwards the National Programme
extended beyond 10.00 pm for the duration of half an hour to
accommodate more music and dance programs of popular artists.
• Due to various reasons, the timing was fixed from 8.40 pm to 11.15
pm.
• It will go beyond 1 am when thelate night feature films were shown
in television
Asian Games Coverage
• The coverage of the nineth Asian Games, hosted by India in
November 1982, was for Doordarshan a challenge of unprecedented
magnitude. About 5,000 competitors, pitchedin 21 events at 18
widely-scattered venues in Delhi alone (besides Jaipur and
Bombay) were to be ’caught* in 'action’.
• The 'scene' kept on moving from in-the-air to under-the-water;
from outdoors under-the-sun to indoors in artificial lights of
different intensity, and some going live on the air and others to be
recorded and edited in time for the daily 'Highlights’.
• Then international feeds were to be organized to assist the world to
report this important event. Indexed a trying time for the TV
professionals.
• Happily, the images produced by Doordarshan on the TV screen
turned-out to be as colourful and as exciting as were the 'Games’.
Growth of TV
• There were few ignition points that triggered the
phenomenal growth of television in India from mid
1970s.
1. SITE
2. INSAT
3. KCP
4. Privatization
SITE Experiment
• The Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) was
a major NASA applications satellite program for educational
TV in India.
• The project involved the use of NASA’s Application
Technology Satellite-6 (ATS-6) to broadcast educational
programs directly to television sets placed in different rural
clusters.
• The agreement for SITE was signed between NASA and
India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) in 1969.
• The project was executed from August 1975 to July 1976 and
received a great deal of media attention in the country.
• It was touted as a massive experiment in social engineering
and was hailed by some enthusiasts as the world’s largest
sociological experiment
• Television sets were installed in six states
(Rajasthan, Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh,
Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka) with “clusters” of
about 400 each, totalling 2,400 villages.
• The instructional programmes were broadcasted
for four hours every day – 1 ½ hour in the morning
(for school children) and 2 ½ hour in the evening.
• The programmes were made primarily by
Doordarshan in the four languages involved and
were produced in four studios set up especially for
SITE.
• Villagers in each “cluster” received programmes made
especially for them in their own language plus a 30
minute “common programme” meant for all viewers
and aimed at promoting national integration.
• The programs under the SITE were classified into two
broad categories:
1. Educational television (ETV) which was meant for
the school children in the age group of 5-12 years.
2. Instructional television (ITV) for adult audience,
primarily designed for neo-literates and illiterates.
• Developmental television programmes were beamed with the
objectives in the areas of family planning, agriculture, national
integration, education, teacher training, occupational skills, health
and hygiene etc.
• Education and information inputs were provided in several
languages.
• The SITE was a collaborative programme lead by ISRO with the
active participation of Doordarshan (at that time AIR), the
national TV broadcast organisation, the Ministry of Education,
etc.
• The project was supported by various international agencies such
as the UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and ITU.
• ISRO established a TV Studio at Ahmedabad as the main studio
for SITE programme broadcast while Bombay studio was
established for making special education programmes.
• Impact Evaluation by SITE led to the following
conclusions:
- Community television sets can be maintained in remote
parts of the country with the availability of 90%
electricity
- Community viewing is feasible with audience sizes of 80
to 100
- Viewers preferred instructional rather than
entertainment programmes
- Gains were made in areas of nutrition, health and
hygiene
- Communication effects gap is narrowed through the use
of community television
- Television was preferred to radio and most teachers
preferred SITE for training
INSAT
• The Indian National Satellite System or INSAT, is a series
of multipurpose geostationary satellites launched by
ISRO to satisfy the telecommunications, broadcasting,
meteorology, and search and rescue operations.
• Commissioned in 1983, INSAT is the largest domestic
communication system in the Indo-Pacific Region. It is a
joint venture of the Department of Space, Department of
Telecommunications, India Meteorological Department,
All India Radio and Doordarshan.
• The overall coordination and management of INSAT
system rests with the Secretary-level INSAT Coordination
Committee
KCP
• The Kheda Communications Project or KCP is a field
laboratory that aimed at the development and local
communication in Kheda district of Gujarat.
• This project began in 1975 and continued till 1990.
• The site chosen for the experiment was Kheda district, which
is an area near the SAC headquarters in Ahmedabad.
• Kheda Communications Project is believed to be a milestone
in the history of Indian television.
• The Development and Education Communication Unit
managed this project and produced the development and
educational programmes that involved the local audience.
• This project was the tested for the production of research
based participatory development programmes receiving
worldwide recognition and acceptance.
• The hardware of Kheda Communication Project consisted of one
low-power transmitter located in Pij village, about 50 kilometers
south of Ahmedabad, which was connected to a local studio, the
local Doordarshan station, and to a satellite earth station in
Ahmedabad.
• Thus Kheda Communication Project could broadcast either local
television programmes or national satellite television
programmes.
• Around 650 community television sets were provided to 400
villages and also installed in public places like schools, where
village audiences gathered in the evenings to view the broadcasts.
• Technicians periodically toured these villages to get service and
repair the television sets.
Early Programmes
• The next step of TV for general public was spurred on by
those individuals who had imported TV sets and would be
manufacturers of TV receivers.
• As a result Government decided to mix entertainment
with programmes of social education.
• the Gospel of "Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram“ the first
regular general service began from Delhi .
• The general programmes telecast in Hindi and English
were on folk music and folk dance, news and news
reviews, light entertainment, quiz programmes,
discussion on topical subjects, interviews with noted
personalities and experts.
• When the history of television in India is written,
1985 will be remembered as the year of the
sponsored programme.
• Eminent outside producers and film-makers are
being invited regularly to offer their sponsored
programmes to Doordarshan, generating thereby a
healthy competition.
• The much enjoyed sponsored programmes
Humlog, Buniyaad, Ramayana series are based on
the themes of National Integration.
Krishi Darshan
• Considering .that India -largely lives in
villages and agriculture is the
mainstream of her economy, a
specialprogramme for farmers called,
'Krishi-Darshan” was launched on
January 26,1967
• The basic objectives with the latest
technical and scientific know-how about
farming, agricultural implements,
fertilisers, weather forecasts.etc.
• To acquaint the rural audiences with the
importance of education, personal
hygiene, health and family welfare and to
bring about national and emotional
integration through purposeful social
comment and healthy entertainment.
Hum Log
• Hum Log(We People), which began on July 7, 1984
and ended after 156 episodes on December 17, 1985,
was the pioneering ancestor of today's soaps.
• It is the story of an Indian middle-class family of the
1980s and their daily struggles and aspirations.
• idea for Hum Log was developed in collaboration
with writer Manohar Shyam Joshi, who scripted the
series, and filmmaker, P. Kumar Vasudev, who went
on direct the series.
• The title score was composed by music director Anil
Biswas.
Idhar Udhar
• Idhar Udhar, a Hindi TV show that first aired in 1985,
on Doordarshan.
• It starred real-life sisters Ratna Pathak and Supriya
Pathak. Its first season was taken off the air after 12
episodes.
• Idhar Udhar was the third sponsored program on
television after Hum Log and Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi. It
starred Ratna Pathak Shah and Supriya Pathak.
• It reached the cult status in just 13 episodes giving
Ratna Pathak Shah the sobriquet of Queen of comedy
and Aanand Mahendroo as the King of Comedy.
Country Wide Classroom
• “Under the Countrywide Classroom”, on Doordarshan
special educational television programmes were produced and
telecast for the benefit of undergraduate and post graduate
students across the country.
• Today these programmes are also telecast on DD Bharti,
Gyandarshan and VYAS – the higher educational channel of
UGC.
• The countrywide classroom also meant to provide students a
‘ringside view of the latest developments in various fields’
taking place around the globe.
• The programmes are meant to “upgrade”, “update” and
“enrich the knowledge” of students, “broaden their mental
horizons” and “stimulate their urge” to know more.
Gyan Darshan
• Gyan Darshan (GD) channel is a major milestone in the
field of Educational Television in India.
• Launched in the year 2000, GD is a 24-hour educational
channel which offers the best of educational
programmes covering a variety of subjects and catering
to a wide range of viewers. These include pre-school,
primary, secondary and higher secondary students,
college/university students, youth seeking career
opportunities, homemakers and working professionals.
• GD conducts two hours of live interactive sessions every
day to build interactivity in the Open and Distance
Learning (ODL) system.
DD Sport
• DD Sports is a state-owned TV channel telecasting
from Central Production Centre Delhi.
• DD Sports was launched on 18 March 1998.
• In the beginning, it broadcast sports programmes
for six hours a day, which was increased to 12 hours
in 1999.
• From 1 June 2000, DD Sports became a "round-
the-clock" satellite channel.
• It was an encrypted pay channel between 2000 and
2003, and on 15 July 2003, it became the only free-
to-air sports channel in the country
DD Metro
• DD Metro also known as DD 2 was an Indian free-to-air
television channel. It was launched in 1984 as DD2 in Delhi
as an alternative to DD National.
• Later, it increased its coverage area by expanding to
Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.
• In 1993, the channel was rebranded as DD-2 Metro.
• On 3 November 2003, the Prasar Bharati Corporation
replaced DD Metro with their new news channel, DD News.
• DD Metro programming consisted of many genres of
television programmes, including family dramas boasting
women as main characters, comedies, reality TV shows and
others.
DD Kendra
• Doordarshan Kendra is a unit of Doordarshan that
caters to various states providing regional
programmes
• This includes 66 studio centres that sends DD signals
to 34 states(28) and union territories.(Delhi and 5U.T)
• The studios for each Kendra is set across these 66
cites, giving it a wide reach, having both 24 hours and
Non-24 hours studios
• Kendra channels are usually named after its city such
as DD Chennai, DD Delhi, DD Chadigarh, DD
Coimbatore etc.
DD Kisan
• DD Kisan is an Indian agriculture 24-hour television
channel, which is owned by Doordarshan.
• It was launched on 26 May 2015.
• The channel has been dedicated to agriculture and
related sectors, which disseminates real-time inputs
to farmers on new farming techniques, water
conservation and organic farming among other
information.
• DD Kisan is India's first channel dedicated to the
farmers.
• An exclusive 24x7 channel which is entirely
dedicated to the farmers of the nation.
• For the upliftment of country, villages must
progress , and if villages are to progress, then it is
essential for agriculture to progress.
• DD Kisan channel is directed towards achieving this
feat.
• It will inform farmers about changes in weather and
global markets so that farmers can plan ahead.
• The 24x7 Kisan Channel will telecast updated
information on agriculture and related subject for
the benefit of its target audience including cattle
rearers, bee keepers, poultry owners, mechanics and
craftsmen.
• This would include information broadcast on the changing
weather condition well in advance, and the low cost
measures to protect crops / enhance produce during such
conditions.
• Advice of IMD Scientists and Agricultural Scientists would
be broadcast periodically for the farmers so that they may
know about the crop diseases, ways to protect crops from
various diseases and on how to increase the crop yield.
• The Channel will give information on newer ways of
agricultural practices being followed world over and the
R&D in the agri sector across the world.
• The Channel has tie up with IMD, IARI, Agricultural
Universities, Krish Vigyan Kendras etc.
NEW TERMS
• SOAP OPERA: A soap opera (or more specifically
an operatic drama) is a radio or television serial
dealing especially with domestic situations and
frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble
casts and sentimentality.
• A crucial element that defines the soap opera is the
open-ended serial nature of the narrative, with
stories spanning several episodes.
• The term "soap opera" originated from radio
dramas originally being sponsored by soap
manufacturers.
• Narrowcasting: Narrowcast' means "to aim a
broadcast at a narrowly defined area or audience.
• Narrowcasting is about precisely delivering the
right tailored content to the right people, at the
right time, and at the right place.
• SITE Experiment is an example of effective
Narrowcasting because programmes were made for
the rural community in their language, to meet
their social needs and during their time of
availability.
• Public Service Broadcasting:
• Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other
electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public
service.
• In many countries of the world, funding comes from
governments, especially via annual fees charged on
receivers.
• Prasar Bharati, India’s public service broadcaster, was set
up by an Act of Parliament in 1997.
• It runs the national television and radio networks
Doordarshan (DD) and All India Radio (AIR) respectively.
• News Reels: Newsreels were short films shown in movie
theaters, generally along with cartoons and feature films.
• Newsreels were initially seen as entertainment rather
than news, and as a matter of policy, avoided
controversial topics; later newsreel footage was censored.
• Indian News Parade was a cinematic newsreel produced
by the Indian government between September 1943 and
April 1946.
• Originally named Indian Movietone News, it was
produced in response to the Anglo-centric newsreels
created by British and American companies.
• National Broadcast Association: The News Broadcasters
Association (NBA) represents the private television news &
current affairs broadcasters.
• It is the collective voice of the news & current affairs
broadcasters in India .It is an organization funded entirely
by its members.
• The NBA has presently 26 leading news and current affairs
broadcasters (comprising 76 news and current affairs
channels) as its members.
• It was established by leading Indian news broadcasters in 3
July 2007.
• The Association was set up to deal with ethical,
operational, regulatory, technical and legal issues affecting
news and current-affairs channels
• NASA: The National Aeronautics and Space
Administration is an independent agency of the U.S.
Federal Government responsible for the civilian space
program, as well as aeronautics and space research.
• Satellite Instructional Television Experiment or SITE
was an experimental satellite communications project
launched in India in 1975, designed jointly by NASA
and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
• The project made available informational television
programs to rural India.
• ISRO: The Indian Space Research Organisationis the national
space agency of the Republic of India, headquartered in
Bengaluru.
• It operates under Department of Space (DoS) which is directly
overseen by the prime minister of India while chairman of ISRO
acts as executive of DoS as well.
• Satellite Instructional Television Experiment or SITE was an
experimental satellite communications project launched in India in
1975, designed jointly by NASA and the Indian Space Research
Organization (ISRO
• The Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) is a series of
multipurpose geostationary satellites built and launched by ISRO
to satisfy the telecommunications, broadcasting, meteorology and
search-and-rescue needs of India.
• EDUSAT: EDUSAT is meant for distant class room
education from school level to higher education. This was
the first dedicated "Educational Satellite" that provide
the country with satellite based two way communication
to class room for delivering educational materials.
• . It is mainly intended to meet the demand for an
interactive satellite based distance education system for
the country.
• It strongly reflects India’s commitment to use space
technology for national development, especially for the
development of the population in remote and rural
locations.
• UNESCO: United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization a specialised agency of
the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world
peace and security through international
cooperation in education, the sciences, and culture.
It has 193 member states and 11 associate members,
as well as partners in the nongovernmental,
intergovernmental, and private sector.
• SITE project was supported by various
international agencies such as the UNDP, UNESCO