stir is being spearheaded by the National Federation of Akashvani and Doordarshan Employees (NFADE). The Federation itself is an umbrella organisation with 21 smaller staff associations comprising various DD and AIR employees as its members. The Federation has claimed that the nearly 40,000 Prasar Bharati employees will be participating in the “work to rule” agitation. This may affect the working of both DD and AIR as they are shortstaffed. The shortage is estimated to be nearly 8,000 employees in Prasar Bharati. For, there have not been any recruitment in the organisation for many years now.
Prasar Bharati sources told this newspaper that it has sought permission from the government to hire people for at least 2,700 “critical” posts in DD and AIR. A proposal regarding the proposed recruitment was sent to the Union ministry of information and broadcasting in April 2007.
The employees are concerned that the group of ministers (GoM) looking into various issues concerning the public broadcaster, are yet to decide on their demand that employees and assets be retained by the government. In the last meeting of the GoM, held in early April, yet another crucial issue — financial and capital restructuring of Prasar Bharati — was discussed. NFADE, however, feels that the deliberating on merely capital restructuring without discussing assets is not in consonance with the assurance given to them earlier.
The Prasar Bharati employees.