LAHORE: A special storytelling show for students called “Bal Bahar” has been launched by FM 95 Punjab Rung, the radio station of the Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (Pilac), which is the only Punjabi radio channel with 24-hour transmission.

Short plays and a classical music programme are the other two new shows, according to Pilac Director-General Dr Sughra Sadaf.

No other radio station, she told Dawn, currently airs child content. She claimed that children shows, dramas, and classical shows are now relics of a bygone era, but her radio was working to revive them. FM 95 Punjab Rung was founded in 2007 and has a 60-kilometer broadcasting range, thus Punjab in India can hear it.

According to Ms Sadaf, Pilac also launched two radio stations in Rawalpindi and Multan.

The annual budget of the three radio stations is Rs2 million, but the low budget has not hindered Pilac from introducing new programmes and coming up to the expectations of its listeners has been its top priority. She said it was hard to find children’s literature for radio programmes. Nevertheless, the institute went ahead with a storytelling programme for children.

She said the radio has also unveiled a series of audio-visual documentaries; of which the visual ones are screened on the social media pages of FM 95 Punajb Rung.

Radio dramas are hard to find these days. There have been instances when Radio Pakistan broadcast numerous new dramas.

It is currently, however, a rare activity. Short radio dramas and folk music that were recorded at the Punjab Lok Studio, constructed in Pilac, have begun to air on Pilac.

She said the Pilace office is at the Gaddafi Stadium complex, and when there are international cricket events there, the radio transmissions are interrupted.

Since the staff is not allowed inside, she said, “that’s a huge problem for us, especially when it comes to the live radio transmission.”

In such a case, she explained, “we pause our live broadcast and air recorded programmes and back-to-back music.”

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2022