PRESS & MAGAZINES of Jharkhand
Jharkhand television, newspapers and radio form an integral part of media in Jharkhand. Jharkhand media serves as the medium of public awareness and broadcast.
It is a well-known fact that media is the reflection of a society: media seems to be an extension of the society, as it depicts the current events and current state of the society. Furthermore, it can be said that media celebrates and exhibits the brighter aspects of life, whereas it also exposes the shortcomings ingrained within the society. Similarly, media of Jharkhand celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Jharkhand: it also exposes the deformities in the social structure of the territory.
Talking about media at Jharkhand, it can be said that Jharkhand media saw a phenomenal growth in the recent years. A study shows that there is a tremendous growth in the number of dailies and weeklies in Jharkhand.
Some of the important newspapers that deserve special mention in this context are Ranchi Express and Prabhat Khabar. These newspapers have, indeed, showed a remarkable growth in the recent years.
Moreover, television and radio are also an inevitable part of media in Jharkhand. Besides the folk dances and folk songs: television and radio seem to be the main source of entertainment in Jharkhand. The urban Jharkhand, like all the other urban cities of India, is not untouched by media. Jharkhand media seems to be the main source of information, as well as entertainment for the people residing in the major towns and cities of Jharkhand. In the present time, All India Radio and Doordarshan, along with other television channels such as Zee TV, Star TV, NDTV, etc. have emerged as the main source of entertainment and recreation in Jharkhand.
Jharkhand TV
Jharkhand TV seems to be an integral part of every household. TV in Jharkhand has become an important element in the major towns and cities: entertainment and recreation without TV is non existent in Jharkhand.
It goes without mention that with the growing influence of urbanization, folk dances and folk songs is giving way to Jharkhand TV. In Jharkhand, folk dances and folk songs used to be the basic means of entertainment and recreation; but with the advent of TV at Jharkhand, the forms of entertainment has lost its vitality.
It is noteworthy that the indigenous forms of entertainment, viz. folk songs, folk dances, archery, gaming, etc. has ceased to exist in an urban society of Jharkhand due to various reasons; but, the basic reason seems to be the fact that these forms of entertainment calls for a lot of initiatives on the part of the participants. But the modern lifestyle hardly gives any time for leisure for the people of Jharkhand: the modern lifestyle is highly demanding. Therefore, the residents of Jharkhand prefer TV to any other forms of entertainment. Doordarshan, Sony TV, Zee TV, Star TV, NDTV, CNN, Times Now, etc. are some of the major channels of Jharkhand television that help the residents of Jharkhand to enjoy amidst their busy schedule.
Radio in Jharkhand
Radio in Jharkhand also forms an inevitable part of entertainment. All India Radio in Jharkhand covers the entire territory of Jharkhand and help the people of Jharkhand to spend their leisure time.
The folk culture of Jharkhand is marked with folk dances and folk songs. But, due to the scarcity of time in modern lifestyle: the folk songs and dances in Jharkhand have given way to other modern forms of entertainment such as television and radio. The modern lifestyle is more demanding: therefore, it leaves very little time for the people of Jharkhand to indulge in entertainment and recreation. The folk culture, as we all know, is elaborate; therefore, it becomes difficult for the urban people of Jharkhand to indulge in it.
Moreover, people from the rural areas cannot afford to buy television sets. For them radio is the most informal medium. Since the year of 1999, the All India Radio in Jharkhand has been running programs in the local dialects. At some places in Jharkhand, radio is the only available source of entertainment for the people. Since the language used is very informal, so it is much closer to the people’s heart.
In this respect, TV and radio at Jharkhand has become an alternative for the people of Jharkhand for entertainment and recreation. The All India Radio and many other FM channels operating in Jharkhand have, indeed, made it easier for the people of Jharkhand to enjoy the sweet melodies. The radio service of Jharkhand is a boon for the people of Jharkhand in the hustle and bustle of the contemporary lifestyle.
Ranchi Newspaper
There are two important Ranchi newspapers in the state of Jharkhand. These two newspapers are the Ranchi Express and the Prabhat Khabar. Both these newspapers are well acclaimed not only within Ranchi but across the whole state of Jharkhand.
Both the newspapers in Ranchi, which is, the Ranchi Express and the Prabhat Khabar, are printed in the national language of India, that is, Hindi. They are published everyday and are in high demand in the stalls across the place during the breakfast time.
The Ranchi Express, one of the most renowned newspapers of Ranchi, prints authentic information about the world around. This newspaper of Ranchi was first published after the independence of India, in the year 1963.
Since its birth, the Ranchi Express has shown a lot of progress. It has gradually become a significant part of the social and cultural life of the state. This newspaper is published from five separate places within the state of Jharkhand. These are Dhanbad, Jamshedpur, Ranchi, Daltonganj and Hazaribagh.
The Prabhat Khabar, another one of the most prominent newspapers at Ranchi, is a newspaper that is acclaimed throughout the country of India, since it has made its place outside Jharkhand as well in the states of West Bengal and Bihar.
The reason for which Prabhat Khabar, one of the major Ranchi newspapers, has a special position in the cultural milieu of the state is its main focus on news items that have close associations with the day-to-day life of the general mass of the state.