Category: World Service
Date: 12.04.2005
Printable version
Around 10,000 people took part in the BBC Urdu service's month-long audience campaign across Pakistan.
BBC Sangat. Kahain Aap Sunain Hum (You Say, We Listen) covered thousands of kilometres to meet the Pakistani audiences face-to-face, engaging people from local communities in discussions on the issues affecting their lives.
The events held in Balochistan, Sindh, Punjab, Kashmir, North-West Frontier Province and Northern Areas were broadcast daily on the BBC Urdu service's popular programme, Sairbeen, and featured online on the world's leading Urdu-language site, bbcurdu.com.
Acting Head of BBC Urdu, Waheed Mirza, said: "It was a great learning opportunity for our programme-makers, as they came face to face with people who listen to our output.
"It was also heartening to learn about the many ways the BBC touches upon its audiences - and the importance they attach to how we report news."
People travelled hundreds of miles to meet their favourite presenters and share their views. Radio Editor of BBC Urdu, Shahzeb Jillani, says that meeting them was exhilarating:
"These people humbled us with their enthusiasm, their respect for the BBC brand and their appreciation of the quality of broadcasting we provide.
"The campaign also enabled us for the first time to meet our new listeners: people in their early-to-mid twenties. Many of them are university students: serious, well-informed, curious about the world, and looking to us to widen their knowledge and enhance their aspirations."
These are quotes from some of the thousands of people who came to the BBC Urdu events:
"I am a labourer and left my day's wage to come here and meet the BBC team. I wish I could do more for them but I am too poor." Male, Khairpur
"It's good that Sairbeen has become hour-long now. I only went to primary school and couldn't get more education, but the BBC helped me understand the conditions of the world around me." Male, Zhob
"I am a journalist and BBC helps me in my work quite a bit. I can't listen to BBC every day but whenever there is big news I definitely listen to the Urdu service." Female, Faislabad
"The BBC should continue telling the truth." Male, Kot Jhabani
"I am a shopkeeper. I really enjoy listening to the BBC first thing after the morning prayer." Male, Attock
"I started my journey in the morning to come here and meet the BBC team. The BBC is my teacher and I decided I should meet all my teachers today." Male
Notes to Editors
BBC Urdu broadcasts three times a day.
Its flagship programme, Sairbeen, aired seven days a week at 8.00pm Pakistan Standard Time, provides 60 minutes of news and current affairs.
Jahanuma, which starts at 6.30am, is a 30-minute daily breakfast programme which sets the day's news agenda.
At the end of the day there is Shabnama, a 30-minute round-up of the main events starting at 10.30pm.
In addition, BBC Urdu brings listeners weekly magazine features on sports, science and economy that can also be accessed through its popular online site bbcurdu.com.
BBC World Service broadcasts programmes around the world
in 43 languages.
It is available globally on short wave; on FM in 140
capital cities; and selected programmes are carried on around 2,000
FM and MW radio stations around the world.
The BBC World Service websites receive around 280 million
page impressions every month.
