BAHAWALPUR: A new 10-kilowatt transmitter would be installed at the Bahawalpur Radio Station in two months.

Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) Director-General Muhammad Imran Gardezi said this at ‘Cholistan Bhaitak’ by the Bahawalpur Radio Pakistan in collaboration with the Cholistan Development Council on Friday.

He said the Saulatul Quran channel and FM-101 radio channel would also be launched.

He said the installation of a new transmitter had been necessitated as Bahawalpur needed to expand its sphere to reach 95 percent of the audience. He said to preserve the regional/folk music, a separate studio would be established in Multan.

He said the Radio Pakistan was still an important means of communication and entertainment and one of the best tools to educate the people to cope with the trends of extremism and to meet the targets of Zarb-i-Azab operation and the National action Plan. He said the PBC with its own financial resources would install one medium-wave and three new MM transmitters annually to expand radio’s areas.

MNAs Najeebud Din Owaisi and Parveen Masood Bhatti were interviewed by the anchorpersons on the stage.

Quaid-i-Azam Medical College Prof Dr Haroon Khurshid Pasha and station director Tariq Shah also spoke.

Radio and TV artistes, including popular Seraiki duo Naseer Parwana and Jameel Mastana, thrilled the audience with their performance.

Mr Gardezi also inaugurated the renovated Radio Pakistan building.

Cholistan Development Council Executive Director Farooq Ahmed Khan said Bhaitik aimed at introducing and projecting the Cholistan culture, civilisation and reviving the old vanishing traditions of the city life’s drawing rooms known as Baithak.

A stage depicting the rural life was decorated on the lawns of the radio building.

PROTEST: A large number of medical representatives of various pharmaceutical companies protested on Friday at ban on their entrance to the Bahawal Victoria Hospital (BVH) to introduce their products to doctors.

Hundreds of medical representatives converged outside the hospital and blocked hospital’s both main gates and the nearby city’s main dual carriageway. The vehicular traffic came to a complete halt creating inconvenience to motorists for several hours.

Due to the blockade of both gates of the BVH, hundreds of patients and their attendants could not enter indoor wards, emergency ward and outpatients department. Protesters demanded that the restrictions on their entry to the BVH be lifted.

BVH Additional Medical Superintendent Dr Rao Javed Iqbal said medical representatives had been banned into the hospital by the government under a notification issued several years ago. He said the ban would not be lifted.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2015