PM Modi lays foundation stone of FM relay station at Dahod

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday laid the foundation stone for Akashvani Dahod FM Relay Station Project in Gujarat.

The foundation stone plaque for the 10 Kilo watt FM Relay Station was unveiled virtually by the Prime Minister along with other projects at an event in Bodeli in Gujarat.

This station will be set up at an estimated cost of Rs 11 crore and is strategically located to cover approximately a 55 km radius area, encompassing approximately 75 per cent of the tribal district of Dahod, an official statement said.

This transmitter will also partially cover the neighbouring tribal districts of Madhya Pradesh, including Alirajpur and Jhabua, it added.

With the launch of the Dahod station, more than 25 lakh residents of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh will gain access to high-quality FM broadcasts.

Prasar Bharati is also working on the installation of FM transmitters in key locations, including Bhuj, Bhavnagar, Dwarka, Radhanpur, and Dessa with varying power capacities at a cost of more than Rs 39 crore.

These projects are part of the Broadcast Infrastructure Network Development Scheme funded by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

The projects when completed and made operational will increase the FM coverage to approximately 65 per cent of the state's area and is expected to reach about 77 per cent of its population.

In April, the Prime Minister inaugurated 91 FM transmitters of 100 W each strengthening Akashvani's presence across the country.

As of now, Akashvani has a total of 613 functional FM transmitters in India, providing radio services to approximately 59.2 per cent of the country's area and serving about 73.5 per cent of the population.

The Akashvani AM network operating on medium wave already covers 88 per cent of area and 95 per cent of the population of the country.