Ambala prison radio: Now, six women to work as RJs

Almost ten months after the prison radio of Ambala Central Jail started with six male inmates working as radio jockeys (RJs), the facility will soon have an equal number of female inmates taking up the role

Almost ten months after the prison radio of Ambala Central Jail started with six male inmates working as radio jockeys (RJs), the facility will soon have an equal number of female inmates taking up the role.

Presently, the Ambala prison radio runs for three hours daily, offering a mix of self-created content and religious music. (HT)

Officials said that inspired by the content and the state of happiness emerging from the radio, the women inmates expressed their desire to be trained as RJs.

Jail superintendent Lakbir Singh Brar said that the authorities have received a positive response from the inmates about the prison radio in the past few months. “Earlier, six inmates including a 65-year-old doctor and two brothers were engaged in its functioning since its inception in February. In the meantime, three were released. It is now time to open this platform for women too, who will be trained in the second phase along with six more male inmates,” Brar added.

These inmates will be trained by Vartika Nanda, founder of the Tinka Tinka Foundation and head of the department of journalism at Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University.

Brar further said that the prison radio was helped inmates beat stress in the absence of visitors during the pandemic.

Presently, the jail radio runs for three hours daily, offering a mix of self-created content and religious music. “Aap ki Farmaish” is the most popular programme, where the RJs take requests from the inmates and play songs of their choice.