ISLAMABAD: Radio Pakistan is targeting more than Rs1 billion in annual rental income from its vacant properties by the end of the current financial year, as the state broadcaster seeks to utilise its unused buildings and land for revenue generation.
The Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting, chaired by Senator Sarmad Ali, was informed that Radio Pakistan was renting out vacant spaces mainly to government departments rather than private companies.
Officials told the committee that vacant spaces at H-9 and I-14 in Islamabad had been rented to the Customs Department, generating Rs270 million annually. In Multan, Radio Pakistan has rented space to the Academy of Letters and the Press Information Department.
In Peshawar, regional offices of the Ministry of Information have been shifted to a newly constructed Radio Pakistan building. The arrangement enables the ministry to use government property instead of paying rent to private owners.
The committee also reviewed plans for the protection and improvement of Radio Pakistan’s historic buildings. Officials said a Radio Museum had been established to preserve important equipment and safeguard vacant buildings from possible illegal occupation.
A historic tube transmitter from Lahore has been shifted to the museum, while a specialist builder from Keamari, Karachi, has been engaged to restore the historic building to its original design.
Radio Pakistan is also establishing a broadcast training academy for young people interested in broadcasting and digital media. Officials informed the committee that around 70 university students had already been trained at Radio Lahore in 15 courses, including voice modulation, pronunciation and speaking skills.
The committee also approved a bill seeking representation of parliamentarians on the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation Board. The proposed legislation would allow one senator and one member of the National Assembly to join the board.
However, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting opposed the proposal on the grounds that Section 11 of the State Owned Enterprises Act, 2023, restricts serving parliamentarians from being appointed as independent directors of such organisations.
Chairman Sarmad Ali observed that the State Owned Enterprises law might need to be amended to address the legal issue.
The committee also discussed Radio Pakistan’s 69.2 acres of land on Sariab Road in Quetta, though the matter remained a secondary part of the broader review of the broadcaster’s properties.
The Quetta property was purchased by Radio Pakistan in 1956. The Balochistan government has sought the land for public use, while Radio Pakistan has demanded payment at market rates or land of equal value if the property is transferred.
The committee is expected to visit Radio Pakistan buildings in Karachi to examine their condition and review plans for better utilisation of the broadcaster’s properties.
