Decline of Doordarshan: From India’s Most Viewed Channel to Losing its Sheen

International Case Study Conference Case study title-“Once Upon a Time in Doordarshan” Abstract An Indianpublic service broadcaster, a division of PrasarBharti and once the only and most viewed television channel. However, later it gradually entered the declining phase which is evident from the sharp decline in viewership in homes with Cable and Satellite Television which in 2002 was just at 2. 38% for DD National . It had a modest beginning with the experimental telecast starting in Delhi on 15th of September, 1959 with a small transmitter and a makeshift studio.

The regular daily transmission commenced in 1965 as a part of All India Radio. The television service was extended to Mumbai and Amritsar in 1972. Uptill 1975, only seven Indian cities had a television service and Doordarshan remained the sole provider of television in India. Television services were segregated from radio in April 1st 1976. Each office of All India Radio and Doordarshan were placed under the management of two separate Director Generals in New Delhi. Finally, in 1982, Doordarshan as a national broadcaster came into existence. With the onset of private channels in 1991, Doordashan lost its sheen.

Despite of the fact that it is backed by government, it can only afford to have incremental changes. Given present-day realities when every government in New Delhi uses Doordarshan as a state medium and its viewers as a incarcerated audience, one can opine that probability of things being changed is highly remote. Today we enjoy numerous channels described as General Entertainment Channels or GECs, but back then Doordarshan was the one-stop shop for news, for entertainment, for sports, for edu-informative shows, for light hearted comedies, for song and dance for everything.

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Though the entertainment and movie industry had attained astral heights today, but it must be mentioned that the roots and origin of entertainment came from the authentic Doordarshan. Doordarshan is now more than 50 years old and the challenge before it is to adopt the changes that have taken place in the current scenario then what it prevailed when it began its journey. As a public service broadcaster, it needs to ensure that its broadcasting is driven by sincere vision of providing accessible, diverse, independent and high-quality content to citizens.

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