Prime Minister Narendra Modi's monthly radio broadcast 'Mann ki Baat' has earned Rs 30.80 crore revenue for Prasar Bharati in seven fiscals since its inception on October 3, 2014.
The programme, whose 79th episode was broadcast on Sunday, runs in 23 languages and 29 dialects on All India Radio (AIR) and is telecast in Hindi and other languages on various Doordarshan channels.
The Prasar Bharati has not incurred any expenditure on the production of the programme as it uses existing in-house resources for production and existing translators engaged on assignment-basis for language versions.
Read: PM invokes Mahatma Gandhi, says citizens should lead 'Bharat Jodo Andolan'
According to written responses by Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur in Rajya Sabha last week, the Prasar Bharati has earned the highest revenue of Rs 10.64 crore in 2017-18, while the lowest was in the last fiscal 2020-21 when it could generate only Rs 1.02 crore.
In 2014-15, the Prasar Bharati earned Rs 1.16 crore though the programme started in October 2014, while it rose more than two times in the next fiscal 2015-16 to Rs 2.81 crore. It further increased to Rs 5.14 crore in 2016-17 and more than doubled in 2017-18.
In 2018-19, it fell to Rs 7.47 crore, while 2019-20 saw a sharp decline to Rs 2.56 crore. Thakur, however, said the primary objective of the programme is to establish dialogue with the citizens on issues of day-to-day governance.
The cumulative reach of viewership of the "most popular televised radio programme" has been estimated to range from six crore to 14.35 crore during 2018 to 2020, the Minister added. 34 Doordarshan channels and around 91 private channels broadcast this radio programme.
The Twitter handle 'Mann ki Baat Updates' created to generate interest in the programme has made over 28,000 tweets promoting the programme.
In his latest 'Mann ki Baat' address on Sunday, Modi said a study conducted by MyGov showed that the youth power is steering the programme with suggestions and messages. He said close to 75 per cent who provide suggestions for the broadcast are below the age of 35 years.
"Mann Ki Baat is a medium which has positivity, sensitivity. In Mann Ki Baat, we talk about positive things, its character is collective. This activism for positive thoughts and suggestions in the youth delights me. I am also happy about the opportunity that I get through ‘Mann Ki Baat’ to know the minds of the youth," he said.