NEW DELHI: The 5th National Sammelan for Community Radio Stations will be inaugurated on 16 March by Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitely.

Minister of State for I&B, Rajyavardhan Rathore, will also be present on the occasion. 

The Sammelan will bring together Community Radio Operators, policy makers, Ministries/Departments, the UN and other International bodies like UNICEF and UNESCO and other stakeholders for exchange of ideas and cross learning.

The sessions will highlight the vision of the Community Radio movement in India and its role in setting the agenda on the development discourse at the local level.

The three-day workshop will discuss several important issues such as the role of community radios in good governance, sustainability, content sharing and programming for development. It will delve into the role that Community Radio can play in community learning, promoting livelihoods and agriculture, promoting water conservation and sanitation, strengthening Panchayati Raj Institutions, financial inclusion, legal literacy and facilitating access to justice for marginalised communities.

A compendium containing inspiring stories of community radios from all over the country will be released. 

The National Community Radio Awards will also be presented to promote better programming on CR stations and motivate CR operators to achieve goals of community empowerment.

The Ministry has been organising the National Community Radio Sammelan every year since 2011. The Ministry has also been organising intensive Awareness Workshops in various parts of the country to increase awareness about Community Radio. Sixty three Workshops have been organised so far. These Workshops have proved to be useful to operate Community Radio Stations in an effective way. 

The Ministry has so far issued 409 permissions to set up community radio stations in the country. Out of this, 179 stations have become operational while others are in the pipeline.

The Ministry has also streamlined the approval process for setting up of Community Radio Stations. The applicants can now apply online and track the status of their pending application through a Comprehensive Community Radio Management Information System. A Facilitation Centre has also been set up, with a Toll Free number for providing information. Efforts have also been taken by the Ministry to enable Community Radio Stations to sustain themselves. The Ministry has also introduced a Plan Scheme to provide financial assistance to existing and new community radio stations for infrastructure, equipment, training, capacity building etc.

The Ministry has also been advocating with various stakeholder Ministries like Health, Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Science and Technology and Tribal Affairs to use the medium of CR to reach out to the masses.