The Cost of Doordarshan Programmes for Women and Children: Some Preliminary Estimates

This paper is designed to estimate the cost production of the doordarshan programmes average cost of production, transmission, and reception of the programmes per capital for the two groups. Before presenting the framework and empirical estimates, the paper presents an estimates of the effective reach of the programmes to this target groups and highlights some of felt needs in relation to the programmes of woman and children. This analysis reinforces the fact that the reach of TV to a large section of the rural population and poorer section of the urban population is irrelevant, since they will not be able to meet the private cost of owning and viewing television. Further, it is expected that the public cost of production and transmission will substantially come down as viewers from categories of population who can afford the private cost increase. This provide cost of owning and viewing TV may also come down with increase of production of TV sets and more fiscal incentives in the next few years. Yet, it is difficult to imagine that the private cost would come down to a level that potential viewers from poorer sections from urban and rural areas can have access to television on their own. Therefore, we really want to reach these population group, there is no other way but to go for community TV sets in large numbers at public cost.