Powercut decides this DDK telecast

forbesganj: while the private and foreign tv channels are virtually making a beeline to enter the indian market through cable, the forbesganj kendra of the government- owned doordarshan (dd) seems to be languishing on account of its low power transmitter (lpt). it is in fact on the verge of closure. according to informed sources, allotment of funds to the local tv centre has been stopped since april this year and the centre has no fund even to purchase diesel for running the generator.in fact a local petroleum dealer was supplying diesel to the tv centre on credit on the recommendations of the landlord of the tv centre but he too stopped the supply since november 12 as a huge amount of nearly 51,000 rupees has been accumulated as dues to be paid to him by the centre. needless to say, the generator of the dd kendra is getting rust and the transmission time of the relay centre has been reduced to only a few hours as the kendra functions only when power is in supply. it may be mentioned here that the entire araria district has been experiencing unprecedented power crisis of late and during the last one month, there occurred three to four incidence of major breakdown in power supply which led to total black out in the district from 36 to 96 hours together during which the local dd kendra remained closed. even when the dd kendra works, the viewers receive faulty transmission. inquiries revealed that the power supply unit, the modulator and the convertor of the relay centre lay burnt and none was bothered about their replacement, thanks to the fund crunch. the sources said all these equipment are a must for clear transmission. people in rural areas as well as the interior localities of the town are the worst hit as the cable network has not reached them so far. apart from this, a majority of middle class families which have no cable connection and which depend entirely on dd are also sore. they can not even complain to anyone as the telephone connection of the dd kendra remains disconnected for the last over five months for non-payment. the bill of the bihar state electricity board too is unpaid since april this year and the power supply to the centre may be snapped any time for non-payment. the sources said the funds to the centre are released by the eastern zone headquarters of the dd at calcutta through its bhagalpur and purnia offices but despite repeated reminders by the incharge of local kendra, not a single penny has been released so far.