JEYPORE: The Union Ministry for Information and Broadcasting (I&B)’s decision to include All India Radio’s Jeypore station under Bhawanipatna AIR cluster has not gone down well with people of undivided Koraput with many cultural organisations and public representatives of the region stepping up demand for its cluster status.
In October, the I&B Ministry had decided to create three new AIR clusters in Odisha by turning Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Bhawanipatna AIR into cluster stations.
Jeypore AIR would be put under the Bhawanipatna station. But the decision has evoked strong opposition from the AIR staff and local artistes who feel the Jeypore station deserves a cluster status due to its outstanding performance over the years.
Moreover, it is the second old AIR in the State which has been catering to people of Koraput, Nabarangpur, Gajapati, Malkangiri and Rayagada districts with round the year broadcast on local culture, tradition and languages.
Senior AIR artiste Ramesh Sahu of Jeypore said, “The oldest Jeypore AIR station will lose its credibility once it comes under Bhawanipatna cluster station as all programmes and administrative decisions will be done from there.”
Echoing similar sentiments, another senior artiste and leader of United Cultural Forum, Koraput, Dhiren Patnaik said they will continue to fight for Jeypore AIR’s cluster status.
Sources said, in last one month, over 15 rallies and signature campaigns have been organised in Koraput, Nabarangpur and Jeypore towns demanding revocation of the I&B Ministry’s decision besides cluster status for the Jeypore AIR by immediately appointing a deputy director general and maintaining the station’s dignity.
A mega cultural rally will be conducted by cultural groups and artistes of undivided Koraput district working under Jeypore AIR in this connection on December 26.