NEW DELHI: The raging controversy over “downgrading” of the Doordarshan Kendra (DDK) Tura has been found to be based on “fake news”, with the head of the Prasar Bharati himself denying any such move at all.
In a tweet Shashi S Vemapti, Chief Executive Officer of Prasar Bharati under which the Doordarshan now comes, said this agitation against down grading of DDK Tura is based on fake news. He said that vested interests are provoking such local issues.
“DDK Tura will continue to generate local content as before,” the tweet said. Protest erupted on news that the DDK Tura which is a full fledged centre will now remain Programme Production Centre (PPC) only and main activities of the DDK will be shifted to capital Shillong as per earlier reports which triggered the protest.
Surprisingly, such fake news have been floated and denied earlier multiple times, but the false news comes up time and again.
“Similar fake news was circulated in Jammu, Silchar and Rajkot when we have busted through local media and others,” the tweet said.
) Dozens of members from the Garoland State Movement Committee and the Garo Students Union had converged on the premises of the Doordarshan Kendra station in Tura on Wednesday morning and began a sit- in dharna to oppose the centre’s “move” to strip the station and reduce it to a mere programme production centre. Tura Youth Congress has also taken up the issue.
With the possibility of more intense agitations coming up, Doordarshan authorities from the Tura station invited the agitating GSMC and GSU leaders for a discussion. The agitating organisations were given a verbal assurance by the Additional Director General of Prasar Bharati who spoke over the phone with the protesting leaders.
“After our telephonic conversation the ADG emailed a letter of assurance from Prasar Bharati in Delhi mentioning status quo. “On the basis of the letter we have temporarily suspended our stir. But, we will resume our stir if there is any backtracking on the government assurance,” warned leaders of both protesting organisations.
