Express News Service
KOZHIKODE: Call it the state’s obsession with ‘nostalgia’, reluctance to change or politics. All India Radio is paying a heavy price, Rs 40 lakh monthly for power bills alone, to keep the outdated medium wave (MW) transmission alive at its three stations — Kozhikode, Thrissur and Alappuzha.
While Kozhikode and Thrissur shell out Rs 10 lakh each, Alappuzha pays Rs 20 lakh. Of the 483 AIR stations in the country, a majority have switched to FM, Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) or digital live streaming after completely doing away with MW or combining MW with DRM. The audio quality of digital streaming is far superior to the MW mode, yet Kerala continues with the age-old technology used for Amplitude Modulation (AM) broadcasting with Alappuzha station using 200kw MW transmitter, and Kozhikode and Thrissur using 100kw transmitter…
