A formidable task awaits the luminaries who have been called upon to revive DD and AIR
In deciding to fill vacancies in the Prasar Bharati Board with weighty names to stem the long-brewing rot, the government has spawned the question of whether these personables would be able to justify their inclusion with the great expectations attaching to a passel of issues. On the other hand, the government might well be able to extract the best for an organization in virtual collapse, seriously affected by non-functioning of the Board, infiltration by alien cadre, and absence of focus.
Mrinal Pande, who started her electronic media sojourn as an anchor for Doordarshan in the mid-1980s and is now Chairperson of the Board, has a daunting task ahead. Shyam Benegal, till recently a nominated MP like fellow filmmaker and Board member Muzaffar Ali, has to prove administrative skill. The Prasar Bharati Board is now a repository of high thinking which will be monitored for positivity rather than being led by shenanigans and low politics.
The complexities and controversies the Board was engulfed in recently owing to a series of insinuations, legal proceedings and CVC queries, require adroit tackling with maturity and vision. The Board will have to don a proactive mantle in addressing the issues plaguing AIR and Doordarshan. It will have to devise strategies to bring them out of stagnation and despondency over directionless and unprofessional leadership. The strategies will have to re-establish the supremacy of programming and make the “content is king” adage relevant once again.
Since the inception of Prasar Bharati in 1990, no serious effort has ever been made to draft recruitment rules for the programme cadre. This has resulted in failure to induct fresh blood
Since the inception of Prasar Bharati in 1990, no serious effort has ever been made to draft recruitment rules for the programme cadre. This has resulted in failure to induct fresh blood. A stream of professionals whose importance and role has been systematically subjugated to alien cadre are now turned into pall-bearers of this dying work force! Imagine an assistant producer or programme executive toiling for over 18 years in the same slot and yet being expected to churn out shows comparable with the best! A deputy director or director being subjected to uncertainties in cadre growth, dampening any spirit for performance. Or staff fighting over their legitimate service conditions in various courts – all because of the absence of policy and rules. It gets further compounded with many junior and ill-trained executives from other services being anointed as heads, leading to immense demoralization and resultant wayward performance. The cadre needs a defined upgradation and filling of all vacancies with in-house professionals for desired results.
Another area which needs attention is the liberation of programming from the clutches of those not well versed with the nuances of production, scripting, and camera and studio techniques. These are highly professional areas needing specialized training. All proposals or serials which are approved and rated by professional committees comprising outside media experts were earlier approved by the Director General. The reversal in the practice has brought the CEO’s office into unnecessary controversies. How can a Director General, after agreeing to the recommendations of the selection committee, change the stance of the committee constituted by the CEO and reverse its own decision? This is not only paradoxical but also a serious breach in law.
Similarly, there is the practice of approval of feature films by the CEO, whose job should have been confined to policy formulation and implementation. As Member Executive of Prasar Bharati, the CEO should not be involved in programme functioning of AIR and Doordarshan. Prasar Bharati was conceived as a professional entity for which the Standing Committees of Parliament on IT in the 47th , 60th and 63rd reports have repeatedly sought “functional autonomy”.
Ideally, Deputy Director Generals from the IBPS cadre should decide all programming matters. This would allow them functional freedom and scope to improve their areas. The Director Generals in AIR and Doordarshan supervise their activities, including general administration.
Thus, the refurbished board will have to take drastic and decisions quickly. Let these stalwarts put their heads together and define the concept of a functional media, sorely missed for long.
(The author can be reached at vinodkapoor5@yahoo.com)
