All India Radio website to broadcast Narendra Modi-Barack Obama 'Mann Ki Baat' globally

NEW DELHI: The Modi-Obama joint radio address could not have been heard in the US before Sunday.

Working in the nick of time, All India Radio (AIR) on Sunday operationalised a multimedia website airworldservice.org allowing for the special edition of 'Mann Ki Baat' to be broadcast across the world, including the Americas and the Caribbean.

AIR's external service division is India's voice to the world. The station provides information on infotainment, current affairs, news and special features related to India.

"This edition of Mann Ki Baat will be the widest disseminated broadcast and cover the US for the first time," an AIR official said. AIR sources said American public radio NPR, CNN, ITV and the New Zealand-based private radio station Tarana could also air it.

The two leaders are likely to present their world view and share their political philosophies during the broadcast, which is likely to be of 30 minutes. The programme will be broadcast on the evening of January 27 with its regional language translations to be broadcast on AIR networks on January 28 morning.

Besides state-run broadcasters AIR and Doordarshan, the programme will be available on all private TV channels, radio stations, DTH platforms and live streamed not just on youTube but AIR's channels, including FM Gold, FM Rainbow, Vividh Bharati and Urdu Service that are available on the web.

The broadcast will be translated into many regional languages and some dialects as well.