NEW DELHI: Even as the public broadcaster gears up with programmes to mark the International Women’s Day, it has admitted that women employees account for a mere 9.3 per cent in All India Radio and 9.8 per cent in Doordarshan.
Information and Broadcasting Ministry sources have also told Radioandmusic.com that there are no plans at present to reserve posts for women in Prasar Bharati.
The government had recently approved revival of 1150 posts in the public broadcaster to meet urgent requirements.
All India Radio, which had 8462 vacancies in various categories three months earlier, now has 10081 vacancies. Doordarshan has 6186 vacant posts in various categories.
The vacancies arose due to retirements, resignations, deaths etc since the establishment of Prasar Bharati on 15 September 1997. Interestingly, there have been no fresh recruitments since then.
The government has also granted approval for undertaking recruitment against Group B and C posts through the Staff Selection Commission as a one-time dispensation to fill critical posts expeditiously.
In AIR, there are 1362 vacancies in Group A, 1,584 in Group B, 4863 in Group C and 2272 in group D.In Doordarshan, 724 posts are vacant in Group A, 1140 in Group B, 2871 in Group C, and 1451 in Group D.
Casual presenters were being booked by AIR stations on assignment basis for six-seven days.
Earlier last year, a Parliamentary Committee had noted that All India Radio and Doordarshan have a total staff strength of 33,800 against a total sanctioned strength of 48,022, leaving a gap of 14222 posts. The most critically affected areas are the Programme Wing and the News Services Division (AIR)/DD News.
The existing strength in the Programme Wing is just 6108 out of the total sanctioned strength of 10679, leaving the gap of 4571. Similarly, in NSD/News, there are 146 vacancies in the sanctioned strength of 379 with the present strength at 255.
The Standing Committee of Parliament on Information Technology which examines issues relating to I&B also regretted that Prasar Bharati had failed to live up to the assurance given by then Prasar Bharati Chief Executive Officer that the Recruitment Boards for Prasar Bharati would be set up by 31 March 2011.
The committee had been informed that the notification with regard to setting up of Recruitment Board is under inter-Ministerial consultation. The committee was given to understand that there are still some issues to be resolved between the Ministry/Department of Expenditure and the Department of Personnel.
Since Prasar Bharati is an autonomous body albeit supported by the government, both UPSC and SSC have refused to select for a non-governmental organization.
The proposal for setting up a Prasar Bharati Recruitment Board was approved by Prasar Bharati Board on 21 July 2010 and discussed in the Ministry and a final proposal was referred to the Department of Personnel and Training on 15 February 2011. DOP&T concurred with the proposal in June 2011 and the comments of the Department of Expenditure (DOE) were also received on 28 September last year.
The DoE had requested that a separate proposal be formulated for creation of posts for the secretariat of Prasar Bharati Recruitment Board and also requested for drafting of agreement containing terms and conditions of the members of the Board.
This had been done and the proposal sent to DoE in February 2012 and has now been forwarded to the Law Ministry.