Officials from Bangladesh’s national broadcaster – Bangladesh Betar, held a meeting last week to discuss the possibility of resuming its Urdu service.

The meeting was announced through a notice signed by Betar Director Shahnaj Begum saying: “A Salam, on behalf of the listed artistes, applied to the directorate general of Radio on September 10, requesting the resumption of the Urdu service at the Foreign Service Office. In response to this application, the Additional Director General scheduled a meeting for Thursday.”

The Additional Director General requested the heads of headquarters and units or centres in Dhaka, along with the heads of the programme, engineering, and news divisions to attend the meeting.

When asked about the meeting’s outcomes, Mohammad Salahuddin, Additional Director General (Programme) of the country’s oldest electronic mass media, said: “No decision has been made yet. We can’t comment until a decision is reached. If a decision is made, it will be approved by the director general and sent to the ministry before any announcement is made.”

According to its website, Bangladesh Betar’s external services department airs five hours of daily programming and news in Bengali, English, Arabic, Hindi, and Nepali. These broadcasts are accessible via shortwave (4750 kHz, 63.16 metres), a mobile app, and the Betar website.

The broadcasts aim to improve the country’s image globally, highlight the government’s development activities and the country’s history, heritage, and culture.

The specialised unit also plays a crucial role in forging cultural bonds with various countries, and in sharing Bangladesh’s history and culture with expatriate Bangladeshis and foreign audiences in the Middle East, Europe, and South Asia, serving as an audio ambassador for the country.