GYAN DARSHAN AND GYAN VANI EDUCATIONAL CHANNELS

Gyan Darshan

Gyan Darshan is a satellite-based educational T V channel which was started on 26th January, 2000. It carries not only the educational videos of IGNOU, but also those of other major educational organizations like the UGC, CIET-NCERT, NIOS, IITs, TTTIs and also developmental and cultural programmes intended for the public at large. Operating through a C-band transponder on INSAT 3C as a free-to-air channel on a round the clock basis, the channel has been upgraded as a completely digital one with effect from 26th January, 2003. In its present digital configuration, the Gyan Darshan boquet offers the following channels:

GD-1: The main educational channel catering to all sectors of education.

GD-2: Interactive channel consisting of live teleconferences, telecounselling sessions etc.

GD-3: Technology education channel consisting of programmes pertaining to engineering topics. The programmes are                   sourced from various IITs.

GD-4: The fourth channel in the bouquet of Gyan Darshan Channels, Vyas brings quality education to the students pursuing        higher education. Provision also exists for starting some more channels, planned to be dedicated to agriculture,                   vocational education and school education respectively. The Gyan Darshan channels can be accessed through a local        cable operator or through a dish antenna equipped for digital reception on C-band from INSAT 3C (downlink frequency:          4165 MHz. Symbol rate: 26000).

Gyan Vani

Conceived as a joint venture between MHRD and IGNOU, the Gyan Vani project comprises a network of 40 FM Educational Radio Stations located in different places across the country. Ten of these stations are already operational, viz., Allahabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Coimbatore, Lucknow, Mumbai, Vishakhapatnam, Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata. Each Gyan Vani radio station caters to a service area of around 60 km radius and can be received on normal FM radio sets. The programming mainly aims at local educational needs in the local language. The help of local educational institutions and educationists is sought in programme production. Live programmes with phone-in interactivity is a notable feature of Gyan Vani stations, which are particularly popular with the student population.

Interactive Radio Counselling

This is a phone-in programme which is conducted live across the country every sunday between 4 and 5 PM and is relayed by all AIR stations. Resource persons present in the studio explain the topic of the day after which a live question-answer session follows. Students from some select cities in the country can phone in by using a toll free number (16001-12345) and get their doubts cleared in real time. These phone-in counselling sessions are a boon to distance education students as they provide the much needed interactivity and human touch.