AIR counters NGO, says it didn't appear for rehearsals, event

NEW DELHI: All India Radio has denied a claim by a civil society organisation that a Christian hymn was dropped from the Public Service Broadcasting Day celebrations on November 12 and said the NGO, Jan Prasar, failed to turn up for rehearsals and the main event at the AIR headquarters on November 11 and 12.
A functionary of the broadcaster, on condition of anonymity, said the NGO was allotted time during an hour-long broadcast to mark anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's first and last radio broadcasts from AIR. The NGO's troupe had failed to show up for the programme, leading the broadcaster to make last-minute changes to fill slot.
"The NGO was included in the programme mentioned in the news story and a 13-minute slot was allotted to them. But the school named by the said NGO didn't turn up for rehearsal on November 11. Even on November 12, nobody reported till 1pm. We were only getting assurance from the said NGO that the school named by them will participate in the commemorative event as per the shared schedule ... we were forced to make last minute emergency arrangements," AK Tiwari, additional DG (news) at AIR said.
While officials specifically denied exclusion of English hymns from the live broadcast, they acknowledged that the broadcaster had invited participants to sing Gandhi bhajans in Hindi and regional Indian languages.