NEW DELHI: More than 65 years after independence and 15 years after Prasar Bharati came into being, All India Radio (AIR) now claims that just 0.8 per cent of the population is still uncovered by AM or FM Radio channels.

AIR sources claimed to Radioandmusic.com that a total of 91.9 per cent of the area and 99.2 per cent of the population are presently being reached by the public broadcaster.

Areas that are still not reached include thinly populated high altitude and desert areas comprising north and eastern borders of Jammu and Kashmir, western border areas in Rajasthan, eastern border areas in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, north and north eastern parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other border areas of the North East states.

The sources said steps had already been initiated to reach the 100 per cent mark in terms of coverage. These include projects for upgrading the power of twelve existing transmitters and installation of 166 additional MW FM transmitters of various capacities throughout the country.

In addition, 21 channels of AIR are being carried by DD Direct Plus while some others are carried by Dish TV, and these can be received through a set top box all over the country except the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

New Akashvani kendras approved under the 11^th Plan are being set up at 133 places, including 23 in Arunachal Pradesh, twelve in Tripura, nine each in Assam and Sikkim, four each in Manipur and Nagaland, one each in Meghalaya and Himachal Pradesh, three each in J and K and Rajasthan, and eight in Mizoram..

Eighteen proposals have also been received during the last three years from different states and union territories for setting up FM stations. Some of these have been commissioned or approved.