Dear Dr Sreedher, Dr Kandarpa Das, and CR Movement stakeholders, It looks the Telecommunications Ministry has still not considered our pleas to rollback the spectrum fee hike. What do we do? Seemingly some community radios have already paid the hiked fees! I guess that's an argument for the Ministry to insist all other CRS's on paying the hiked fees, and could be to our disadvantage. But if I could pay such a big annual fee, I would run a commercial FM radio, and work for profit, and not for community outreach and empowerment. Could we still insist and use all other means to persuade the Ministry to rollback? One way could be to coordinate with CRF, since CRF is also a part of this movement, -with much longer history- and all other interested parties so that maximum pressure could be exerted on the government. Probably we could have done well to coordinate these two associations to better impact? For now, what to do? For many of us time is running out - June-end- to pay the fee.I suggest we just don't pay the HIKED fees. But NOT PAYING also is not a good option since it becomes illegal to broadcast without proper license. Shall we ALL pay only the old fees, and fight for complete roll-back, and eventually for abolition of annual fee for CRS? A common understanding and united front is what is required now. --- Rev Dr Richard Rego SJ Director, Community Radio SARANG 107.8FM Assoc. Prof., MCMS Dept of Mass Communication St Aloysius College; P.B. 720 Mangalore - 575003. www.richardrego.wordpress.com www.staloysiuscollege.wordpress.com www.sarang.org.in +919448546425 (pers.) 0824-2449706. (Res)
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