MICAVAANI

The launch of our community radio station, MICAVAANI, is in keeping with MICA’s mission and commitment towards literacy, education, and the use of communication to improve the quality of life in neighbouring communities.  The primary focus of MICAVAANI, launched on 14th November 2005, is the generation of social awareness and developmental communication. 

The station was launched by a team of students from various programmes at MICA, under the guidance of Prof. Ravi Dixit, the faculty member responsible for the setting up and functioning of MICAVAANI.  Students also put together the creative input, even creating the jingle, ‘Tamara Bol, Tamari Vaani’ inhouse. 

The programming is currently targeted at rural communities living within the 5 km coverage radius of the station and in fact, people from these communities create most of the programmes themselves, aided by students and members of MICA’s faculty.  The programming focus is on the information requirements of the rural communities and follows the model of participatory broadcasting.  Thus, the station acts as a link with the events in the world that have an impact on their day-to-day lives. 

Also on the cards are a campus hour programme for the students to express themselves, on-air interactions between the communities and the police as trust-building measures, and more women-centric programming developed by local women themselves with the help of an NGO dealing with women—the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA).

The programmes will progressively include informational programmes detailing various government schemes for the rural population, job opportunities, good agricultural practices, alternative sources of employment, health and hygiene, the status of women, educational broadcasts for the village children and for MICA students.