With a special frequency set for Shirdi, people living within a 25-km radius will be able to tune in
Now, residents and lakhs of devotees making their way to Shirdi will be able to listen to Sai Baba aarti, and tune into other programmes on the radio, as the town will soon have its own FM channel from February 1.
With Prasar Bharati sanctioning a special frequency for Shirdi, people living within a radius of 25 kms of Shirdi can tune in to the 103.7MHz channel and listen to aarti live from Sai Baba's Samadhi temple every day.
Dr Suresh Havare, president of the Shri Sai Baba Sansthan Trust (SSST), Shirdi, met with Prasar Bharati officials to set the tuning of the radio station in the temple town.
Currently, people in the region tune into the Ahmednagar radio station, which is 82 kms away from Shirdi, affecting rasound clarity. Surveys conducted by All India Radio (AIR) have been conducted since 2002-03 and 2006-07, but this is the first time that a station is being dedicated in 21 days.
"After we received directives to conduct a survey for a radio station from senior authorities on December 17, 2016, we conducted it on December 18. A detailed report was submitted on January 6, 2017. The sanction was received within three days. Further details were worked out, a plan was prepared and transmitter was fitted on January 17, 2017. The radio station 'Shirdi Akashwani' will commence from February 1, 2017," said Pradeep Hasalgikar, Programme Head, Akashvani, Ahmednagar.
Initially, aartis will be broadcast at a fixed time, followed by relay programmes from Ahemednagar Akashvani.
"The station has the technical capacity and a dedicated optical fibre cable in place from Shirdi to Ahmednagar. The switch is in Ahmednagar currently. But, there is another switch in Shirdi. In time, the switch for the aarti transmission will be operated from Shirdi," added Hasalgikar.
According to the schedule, aarti will be broadcast from 4.30 am to 6 am, Ahmednagar Akashvani programmes will be transmitted from 6 am to 12 noon.
A relay of Vividh Bharati will be transmitted from 12 noon to 5 pm and 6 to 9 pm. Shirdi Akashvani will transmit programmes and aarti at the temple from 5 to 6 pm and from 9 pm to 10.30 pm.
"FM Shirdi 103.7 will be officially inaugurated on February. On behalf of Sai Sansthan, I met with Mr Suresh Panda, CEO of Prasar Bharati and requested for a dedicated station for Shirdi in view of the forthcoming Samadhi centenary celebrations of Sai Baba. It will help broadcast aarti and Sai bhajans," said Suresh Haware, Chairman of the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust in Shirdi.
The Ahmednagar Akashvani frequency was clear only till Babhaleshwar, about 20-22 kilometres away from Shirdi.
"We are very happy that a dedicated radio station for Shirdi and its neighbouring areas will commence soon," said Amita Korhalkar, a homemaker in Kopargaon, situated near Shirdi.
"We are looking forward to Shirdi Akashvani as it will broadcast aartis in the morning and evening. This is the positive start to the day we were looking for," says Amita.
The station has been set up near Sainath hospital, in the building which earlier housed the Doordarshan relay centre. The station has a technical team in place, with further decision expected to be taken soon.
Prasar Bharati CEO Suresh Chandra Panda will inaugurate the station on February 1.
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