NEW DELHI: With its latest offering, News18 Jammu/Kashmir/Ladakh/Himachal, Network18 has become the first national network to have a dedicated round-the-clock channel from the region.
The latest news channel which will present news in four languages including Kashmiri, Ladakhi and Dogri, apart from Hindi, was launched on the 75th Independence day of India, by Lieutenant Governor Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha.
Speaking at the launch of the channel, Karan Abhishek Singh, CEO Hindi Cluster, News18 network, said, “You may wonder as to what is new in this? News18 Jammu/Kashmir/Ladakh/Himachal will be the country’s first 24×7 channel which is a part of a national news network, which is in itself a huge initiative from our side. Till date, there had been no attempt by any national news network to highlight and tell the stories from these states and locations and hence it is a matter of immense pride that our new channel will help fulfil that void.”
Singh, who spoke in chaste Hindi,, added, “Our focus through this channel will be to become a voice to the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the people from this region. We will try to become a reflection of the extraordinarily beautiful and yet little known culture of this region. The people of this regions have fought hard to protect their traditions for ages, and we hope to bring the story of these traditions to the mainstream India and to the world.”
In a first, the channels editorial department will operate out of multiple locations including Srinagar, Jammu, Leh and Shimla. The channel hopes to focus on the coverage of local economy, thriving sports and tourism ecosystem, regional culture, along with the ever evolving socio-economic and political landscape in the region.
However, on the digital front, Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh will have separate destinations that will provide in-depth ground coverage of the specific area.