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Sunday, August 18, 2013

New transmitters for All India Radio


Press Release

Turgi, Switzerland, August 8, 2013. All India Radio (AIR), India’s National Broadcaster and the premier Public Service Broadcaster of the subcontinent, has ordered two 100 kW shortwave transmitters from Ampegon. The new systems will replace existing analogue transmitters with four tubes by modern analogue/digital transmitters having single tube and hence a much better overall efficiency. The transmitters will operate with the new Ampegon control system to optimize DRM performance, an important factor in the growing Indian DRM market.
 
All India Radio has selected Ampegon as supplier because of the expertise and the reliability of their transmitters well known since decades. AIR is already using many different Ampegon AM/DRM radio transmitters which have been delivered between 1983 and 2012.
 
The transmitters will be manufactured in Turgi, Switzerland. Factory tests together with AIR engineers are planned for January and shipment for February 2014. Thereafter AIR will install the transmitters at a site near New Delhi. Commissioning together with an Ampegon engineer will start in August 2014. The new transmitters are expected to be on air in October 2014.
 
They will be partially used for DRM digital broadcasting and partially for analogue transmission. Furthermore AIR has plans to upgrade 36 of the existing AM mediumwave and 4 of the existing AM shortwave transmitters for DRM digital broadcasting. 
 
AIR originates programming in 23 languages and 146 dialects. AIR operates 244 FM transmitters for coverage of 29.4% surface area and 41.6% of the population. AIR also operates mediumwave transmitters which cover 92% surface area and 99% of the population. Further AIR operates 48 shortwave transmitters. 21 of them are 500 kW or 250 kW shortwave transmitters and are used for external international services. 27 of them are 50 or 100 kW shortwave transmitters and are used for local services and for  coverage of neighboring countries.
(Alokesh Gupta, New Delhi)