Radio Khanchi, the much-awaited community radio project of Ranchi University, went on air on Sunday.

At a small function attended mostly by senior university officials at Raj Bhavan, governor Droupadi Murmu pressed a button to activate the FM radio station tuned at 90.4MHz.

Immediately afterwards, Jay Jay Jay Ranchi gurukul, the university anthem, was heard on the radio followed by Hum Sabka Radio...Radio Khanchi, the signature song of the station.

“We had planned a big launch event at the university auditorium, but had to cancel it because big gatherings should be avoided to check the spread of coronavirus,” said Anand Kumar Thakur, an associate professor and the director of Radio Khanchi.

Khanchi means tokri or bamboo basket. Not many are aware of an old adage that goes: Peeth par chhouwa, math par khanchi/ Jab dekho to samjho Ranchi (When you find women with baskets on their head and babies tied to their back, rest assured you are in Ranchi).

“That’s where the name comes from,” said former pro-VC V.P. Sharan, who had initiated the process of starting a community radio in Ranchi University way back in 2009.

The FM channel will only be available within a 15km radius of the radio station located at the new science block of the university’s Morabadi campus.

“Issues related to students, society, culture and economy will be picked up as topics. No political, religious and gender-biased issues will be allowed,” Thakur said.

The channel will be operated with the technical help from the local station of All India Radio and Broadcast Engineering Consultants Ltd.

The state government has spent Rs 72 lakh on the project that got shelved around 10 years back because of technical formalities.

It was revived at the initative of current Ranchi University vice-chancellor Pandey.