JEDDAH, 20 October 2004 — By the beginning of Haj in 1425H, the Broadcasting Service of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will have completed preparations for launching its seasonal pilgrimage enlightenment broadcasting.
The programs went on the air on the first of Dhul Qadah (Dec. 13) and will continue until the end of the month of Dhul Hijjah 1425 (Feb. 9). Transmission will be in 10 languages: Arabic, English, French, Persian, Turkish, Hausa, Indonesian, Urdu, Bengali and Pashtu.
The Pilgrimage Enlightenment Radio is the object of special attention from Culture and Information Minister Dr. Fouad Al-Farsy and Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Prince Turki ibn Sultan ibn Abdul Aziz.
The radio transmits on two medium waves: 594 Kilohertz is directed at listeners in Makkah, the pilgrimage sites and Jeddah. The other is on 1017 Kilohertz and is directed at listeners in Madinah and its vicinity. It also transmits on two FM waves: One, 94 Megahertz, covers the entire area where the holy sites are located. The other, 101 Megahertz, covers Mina and its vicinity.
The radio will initially broadcast for 18 hours daily which will be extended to 24 hours a day at the beginning of the month of Dhul Hijjah. Taking part in preparing and producing programs to be broadcast by the Pilgrimage Enlightenment Radio are the Ministries of Interior, Islamic Affairs, Endowments and Dawa and Guidance and Pilgrimage. In addition to the contributions by the Ministry of Water and Electricity, the General Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Institute for Pilgrimage Research and the Saudi Red Crescent Society will also be taking part as well as the General Motorcar Syndicate and the Saudi Boy Scouts.
“This multiparty contribution is in addition to the religious and enlightenment programs prepared and produced by the Ministry of Culture and Information together with the elaborate coverage it transmits live during the five days of pilgrimage,” said Samar Fatany of Saudi Radio.
Similarly the Ministry of Culture and Information will continue producing its own live program, “With You on the Air,” which provides live coverage of the various activities relating to the pilgrimage and pilgrims including keeping pace with the pilgrim movement and providing them with instructions and enlightenment regarding religious maters as well as other topics of interest relating to hygiene, the environment, safety devices, and the traffic.
“Interviews will be conducted with specialists as well as pilgrims themselves. The program is enlivened with a competition for which cash prizes are supplied by the Ministry of Culture and Information and which aim at giving the pilgrims a concentrated enlightenment dose,” explained Fatany.
Among the new things added to the broadcasts of the Pilgrimage Enlightenment Radio are two languages, Bengali and Pashtu, together with a direct voice message broadcast live on pilgrimage activities on every day of the pilgrimage and in the languages in which the Pilgrimage Enlightenment Radio transmits programs during the pilgrimage.
