BBC Urdu launches 'Sangat'

The BBC has launched a major campaign to meet its audiences across Pakistan and promote its flagship programme Sairbeen. The BBC Sangat - Kahain Aap Sunain Hum (You Say, We Listen) is a interactive forum that takes BBC Urdu team directly to listeners in Balochistan, Sindh, and Punjab where meetings with local communities will be held, and round-table discussions will also take place in Azad Kashmir, North West Frontier Province, and Northern Areas.
BBC Urdu Bureau chief Zafar Abbas, highlighting the programme activities, said that through the month-long campaign, the BBC Urdu team will visit 10 towns, engaging the audiences in discussions about issues central to their lives: law, police and judiciary, electronic-media and culture, access to fresh water, the real cost of industrialisation, modern times and the tribal system, female education, progress through tourism, sectarianism, and development process in Kashmir and divided families.
BBC Urdu service examines these topics with the representatives of the local communities and the discussions will be broadcast on its flagship news and current affairs programme, Sairbeen. Hopefully, after three weeks from now on the road show will be aired and our presenters will go to people time to time.
Talking about BBC services, he said that BBC World Service broadcasts programmes around the world in 43 languages, and is available on radio and online, and it has a global audience of 146 million listeners, adding the BBC World Service is available globally on short wave; on FM in 140 capital cities; and selected programmes are carried on around 2,000 FM and MW radio stations around the world. The BBC World Service websites receive around 280 million page impressions every month, he said.
BBC Urdu service Acting chief Mirza Waheed is looking forward to the opportunities to interact with the audiences, saying: "The BBC Sangat campaign captures the essence of the BBC Urdu programming, which is for our audiences. It will bring us closer to the listeners in Pakistan, and directly channel their voices and their views to the millions of listeners across the region."
"The BBC Urdu team is dedicated to bringing the very best of Urdu language journalism to its audiences in the region. We want BBC Sangat to further reinforce this team's connection with the people. We are broadcasting so our audiences can benefit even more from the BBC Urdu output and especially our flagship programme, Sairbeen," Shahzeb Jillani, Radio Editor of BBC Urdu said.
Giving more information about BBC Urdu, he said that BBC Urdu broadcasts three times a day. Its flagship programme, Sairbeen, aired seven days a week at 20.00 Pakistan Standard Time, provides 60 minutes of news and current affairs. Jahanuma, which starts at 06.30, is a 30-minute daily breakfast programme which sets the day's news agenda. At the end of the day, there is Shabnama, a 30-minute round-up of the main events starting at 22.30. In addition, BBC Urdu brings listeners weekly magazine features on sports, science and economy that can also be accessed through its popular online site bbcurdu.com.
In short he gives the history of BBC Urdu, saying that BBC Urdu launched in May 1940 as the BBC's Hindustani Service, and took its current name in 1966. It is a multi-media broadcasting service providing radio and online content to Urdu-speaking audience across the world. Nearly, 13 million people throughout Pakistan listen to BBC Urdu service's radio programmes and millions across the world access its popular website bbcurdu.com each month.
He introduces the team of Sangat which includes the well-known voices like Shakeel Akhtar in Delhi, Ali Hassan in Hyderabad, Zaffar Abbas, Aijaz Mehar and Mubbashir Zaidi in Islamabad, Idrees Bakhtiar and Abdul Rasheed Shakoor in Karachi, Shahid Malik and Adnan Adil in Lahore, Zulfiqar Ali in Muzaffarabad, Haroon Rashid and Rahimullah Yusufzai in Peshawar, Azizullah Khan in Quetta, and Altaf Hussain in Srinagar.
He emphasises that it is essential listening for anyone wanting to keep up-to-date and informed of events in Pakistan and the rest of the world.
Web-site bbcurdu.com launched in May 2001. It is updated 24 hours a day, seven days a week and attracts around 7 million page impressions a month. The ability to connect with its international audience is at the heart of bbcurdu.com and the site receives emails from users as far apart as Finland and Japan as well as remote areas of Pakistan. Visitors are able to read transcripts and listen to the audio of radio programmes, and comment in online debates. Its content includes up-to-the minute news, features and analysis on Pakistan, India and South Asia as well as news from the rest of the world.
South Asia wakes up to Jahanuma at 06.30 hours. The 30-minute daily breakfast programme sets the day's news agenda, ensuring listeners fully informed. At the end of the day there is Shabnama, a 30-minute round-up of the main events starting at 22.30 hours. In addition, BBC Urdu brings listeners weekly magazine features on sports, science and the economy.
Shazia Jillani, Shafi Naqi Jamie, Mahpara Safdar, Jane and other BBC broadcasters, producers, correspondents, desk editors, presenters, acting regional heads and reporters along with literary personalities, diplomats and journalists attended the launching ceremony.