The fate of the channels continues to rest on the revenue generated from advertisements and the sponsorship of private sources. The remote is with the viewers. One can skip the advertisement part and have the glimpse of other channels in the intermissions or watch the advertisements only which have all sorts of Bikanj affairs-Kya Kehna. Hum Aap Ke Dil Me Rahte Hai could be anybody's dream but it is very difficult to assess the success rate of a programme or channel. You may speak ill of the popular foreign channels in public, containing all sorts of body exposure but at the same time it is the right choice baby.

Long before its formal inauguration, the Kashmir channel was already being beamed. The formal ceremony was a grand Jash-ne-Kashmir, which got a very good media coverage. Having spent my childhood in Kashmir and being a lover of Himalayan art, culture and architecture, the author was emotionally drawn towards this channel. But, the experience was a rude shock, as there was nothing Kashmiri about
Koshur channel.

Popular Sony TV programme e.g. Boogie Woogie, was on line followed by the archival Gazal recordings of the seventies. One could tune to the melodious Kashmiri Chakri but a short while later it was followed by the programme in English on Kargil-a tourist destination. Khel Sawalaon Ka a quiz programme telecasted in the afternoons is anchored in Urdu and flavoured with Hindi words, while describing the sports persons the commentary is in Kashmiri and the captions in English title of the programme in the back drop is also wrongly spelt.

A programme entitled Gulistan in Kashmiri and Urdu is also about the social changes in the society. There are programmes in Kashmiri like Filmi Nama--Feature film review in Kashmiri; Kashmir Hindi Film Ke Aayene Me and the serials like Hemal Nagaraj apart from the occasional folk dance and music in Kashmiri.

There is no proper schedule of programmes for telecast Popular programmes of Sony TV are telecasted during prime time. Sometime one wonders whether it is Sony of Koshur channel. The only interesting programme on Koshur channel is the news telecasted from Srinagar Doordarshan every day. It gives updated account of everyday events in Kashmir.

After going through all the anomalies in the functioning of the Koshur channel, one wonders what was the need and necessity for launching the channel when they were not fully equipped to sustain the show. Is it only to please the Kashmiri folk or is it a serious attempt to project Kashmir-the paradise-in its true colours. For the present it leaves a serious viewer in doubt about the aim and objectives of this channel and the credentials of the organisers.Programmes which are made specially for this channel are not properly worked out and there were many faux paus which even a layman could detect. Some of the private producers for this channel attributed the
failure to several constrains. According to them the money, sanctioned for episodes is not enough to glove a good quality presentation and it merely becomes a Kam Chalau affair for them. They also blamed the system in Prasar Bharati-which is infested with corruption.

At every level/stage there is corruption from Chaprasi to the Babu to the Bada Babu and the file movement cannot escape the notice of departmental leeches, before it reaches the final destination. This infested system is not going to enjoy a honeymoon for ever. In this competitive era, one has to keep abreast with technological advances and DD is lagging in this race. Its viewership with the opening of other multiple channels is now confined to remote areas.

Kashmir which has been the centre stage in the realm of learning and art and also has a chequered history since times immemorial has attracted people from all walks of life from all over the globe. Kashmir has given much to the outside world which is beyond access and the so-called promoters/organisers are presenting a very sorr the figure of this spiritually and culturally rich land.

The other side of the coin is that the state-J&K is asking for autonomy in the name of Kashmiriat. But there hasn't been anyeffort on part of the State government to promote the Kashmiri language. It is really unfortunate that the language which figures in the schedule of national languages hasn't got the status of first language in this state. Urdu which is not the spoken language of Kashmir or of Jammu and Ladakh is the official language of J&K.