Khabor Akhon - updates.

Abhijit Das Gupta : Retired Station Director, Doordarshan. Ex Bureau Chief, Worldwide Television News (WTN); Production Head, ESPN; Ex Executive Director - Broadcast World Wide. Over 30 years experience in television, - production-in-charge of 3 Asian Games, World Cup Cricket, Media Head - Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s visits to Egypt, Algeria, France, USA and Switzerland. Recipient of National and International Awards.

Prof. Ashoke K Dutta : Director, Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management; Ex Dean - IIT Kharagpur; Member of the Faculty - Graduate School of Business, Creighton University, Nabraska USA, De Sales University, PA USA, Indian Institute of Management. Ex President and CEO of Amrita Bazar Group of Publications; Ex General Manager, The Times of India Group and Ex Controller of Circulation, Ananda Bazar Group and CEO of Desh Publications.
TV NGO ELECTRONIC NGO KOLKATA NGO HIV, AIDS Health and education TV

Bhaskar Ghose, IAS : Retired Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Director General, Doordarshan . Eminent theatre personality and eminent communicator.

Bijan Kr. Saha, IAS : Retd. Chief Secretary - Madhya Pradesh , Ex Chairman, Board of Secondary Education, Bhopal . Currently DG, The Fertilizer Association of India.

Dr. Kunal Sarkar : Cardiac surgeon. Was involved in setting up the largest Cardiac Program in Eastern India for a non-profit making Trust Hospital. The Trust coordinates with various Governmental aid agencies and NGOs to extend scope of Cardiac operations to the lesser privileged section of the society. Affiliated to the Imperial College, London, International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery, USA and the Asian Society of Cardiac Surgery.

Mrityunjoy Chatterjee : A founder Director of Thoughtshop Communications. Received National Awards and National Media acclaim and praise from the Prime Minister for having created a mass movement against drug addiction through motivational campaign.

Rajiv Mehrotra : Managing Trustee - The Public Service Broadcasting Trust. Recipient of several International and 5 National awards from the President of India. Served on the Governing and Academic Council of the Film and Television Institute of India.

Prof. Sarbari Dasgupta : Educator and social scientist. Over 25 years experience in teaching at college / universities.

Shiv S Sharma : One of the earliest stalwarts of Indian television. Retired as Director General Doordarshan. Recipient of Asiadshree from the President of India.

Rupsha Dasgupta : Ex correspondent, WTN (Worldwide Television News), worked for BBC and CNN; Director and Head of Productions - Bangla Akhon television channel.

Tanushree Dasgupta : Communicator, winner of several International awards for designing promotional activities for multi national corporations. Handles concepts to creatives.

Use TV as the central medium of communication.

Successful pilot - Unique response from 11 districts of West Bengal

Future – Reach the entire Indian subcontinent

‘Communication for Social Change Initiative’ (CSCI).

First on-air platform providing blood stock information and offering help in getting BLOOD.

Programs on healthcare -

Our Thalassaemmia programs help 10 caller patients/30 mins.

Our program on Blood has offered rare group blood in 10 minutes.

Our AIDS awareness program help 10 caller patients / 30 minutes.

Our Mental Health program helps 10 caller patients / 30 minutes.

In a LIVE program with Dr Devi Shetty, we received a phone. The caller’s 8 year old son had a Hole in the heart. He was very poor and could not afford treatment. The caller claimed to have received a donation of RS 20,000/- from the Prime Minister’s relief fund … but it was not enough. Dr Shetty promised to do the operation FREE. He said – “ this is a gift to your channel”. This was the beginning… since then we’ve had over 1000 LIVE and interactive programs and we have saved and helped hundreds of deserving patients.

“Broadcast media have tremendous reach and influence, particularly with young people who represent the future" - UNAIDS

Reaching the entire Indian subcontinent

Specially designed programmes for communicating to specific target groups

Healthcare

Awareness.
Helpline offering a BRIDGE.

Education

Employment & self-employment training.
Basic education for children.
Education aimed at the agriculture sector.

India has 1/6th of the world’s population but bears 1/5th of the world’s diseases

HIV / AIDS

India could overtake South Africa as the country with the largest number of HIV infected people

Maternal deaths

Over 5000 women die every year across India due to septic abortion & ill performed sterilization operation

Spurious drugs

One in every four available medicine is spurious

Availability of safe blood

More than 40% below 35 years

86% of cases transmitted through sex

67% Urban concentration

76% of the cases within our Present TV Reach

…"adolescents are especially vulnerable because of high risk behavior, greater biological susceptibility, limited access to information and counseling"… - National Youth Policy.

Sexuality and eroticism very prevalent in literature, sculpture, mythology and media in the Indian society. Yet, topic of sexuality avoided in most families…and in schools.

51% of Indians are below the age of 24 years

Increase in sex related problems among the youth

Misconceptions,

Multiple partners,

Non-protection

Gender – power imbalances

Transactional sex – for gifts, better life, excitement

Drug abuse becoming mainstream in urban life

We interviewed students of Class XI on camera. In just one class there were two students who frequented the brothel and did not take any protection. They were not aware of the use of condoms.

Truck drivers are interviewed. More than 85% had never heard of HIV. Those who had heard of it, believe that HIV is a virus that can jump 80 feet and infect a person.

“Childhood diarrhoea … major cause of illness is largely preventable through simple community action and public education…”

“India has about 1.5 million identified cases of TB (50% in the age-group of 15-44), and more than 3,00,000 deaths annually…”

1.1 million recorded cases of malaria in 2000. Needs public education and community action”

“…Experimentation is needed for new methods of knowledge delivery.

TELEVISION can be a very effective means for educating both school going and non school going Children & adults.”

50% maternal deaths/year due to lack of timely care.

5000 unnecessary deaths / year of women due to lack of awareness.

Gender discrimination.

Through intensive & interactive television programs we will reach the target audience and motivate them into taking correct decision & action.

Creating a tolerant society that will be friendlier towards the HIV Positives – resulting in better Care & Support.

Motivating people to usher in an era of 100% Voluntary Blood Donation – in conformity with WHO Objective.

Is there a better way to reach & support the target group?

Is it possible to bring in an attitudinal change ?

And is it possible for any organization to do it alone ?

Can we get the money to do all these ?

The answer is YES only if we approach the right way.

Merely Highlighting the problems cannot offer solutions…

Ground level carpet bombing is expensive

Sniper shooting – making the specific target audience AWARE … is the most effective approach

TARGET SPECIFIC REACHING OUT TO A GREATER AUDIENCE IS THE IDEALSOLUTION… HENCE TELEVISION, USING LOCAL & VISUAL LANGUAGE.

Is there a better way to reach & support the target group?

Is it possible to bring in an attitudinal change ?

Where will the money come from ?

The answer is YES.
Several corporate houses are committing themselves to social responsibilities. By supporting this foundation, these corporate houses can do a good deal of truly effective public service which will reach out to many more beneficiaries than area specific programs on the ground.

A Communication for Social Change Initiative (CSCI).

It will have :

Help on the call.
An Advocacy Platform.
Electronic Media Network for partners in Social Change Initiatives.

Reach : Minimum 10 million people

Most cost effective

Language : use common language and rely more on the “visual language”

Manned Help desk

Provide an internal communication port for all partners in the social change initiative

The first eNGO that will use television to reach the unreached.

Provide “publicity” to the Health industry.

Round the clock Patient Relations & Advocacy cell for “immediate” availability.

Connection with State Administrative infrastructure.

A TV platform that will run specially designed programs for specific target groups to raise AWARENESS

A TV platform run by the most experienced media people

A Non Profit TV platform offering the most coat effective reach / ‘000

A 24 Hours Help line

Reaching across the border…

Providing cross border helping hand – thus promoting “health tourism”

Abhijit Dasgupta (Secretary)

SUKRITI FOUNDATION
36/2 South End Park, Kolkata - 700029.

Telephone : +(91) (33) 2466 4453 / 2466 7174 / 2463 8899 / 3092 9800

Fax : +(91) (33) 2464 8499

E mail : info@sukritifoundation.org, sukrititv@gmail.com