NEW DELHI: The government on Tuesday said that it is studying the recommendation by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) that private FM radio channels should be permitted to broadcast news.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha today, Information and Broadcasting minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi noted that the TRAI has recommended that FM broadcasters may be permitted to broadcast news from All India Radio, Doordarshan, authorized television news channels, and news agencies United News of India (UNI) and Press Trust of India (PTI).He said in another reply that All India Radio has been permitted to set up around 65 FM channels in 24 states, keeping in view the proposals received from private parties for setting up such channels.

Meanwhile, the number of operational FM channels in the country has gone up to 187, with 31 new radio channels getting commissioned during January, even as President Pratibha Devisingh Patil announced that the number is slated to rise to 266.

The government also received a sum of Rs 99.42 million as licence fee from the private FM radio broadcasters during January, 2008.

The newly commissioned FM radio channels are: Oolala (by Positive Radio) for Agartala and Shillong; S FM (Kal Radio) for Pondicherry, Rajahmundry, Trishur, Trichi, Varanasi and Vijaywada; BIG FM (Adlabs Films) for Jodhpur, Mangalore, Puducherry and Rourkela; My FM (Synergy Media) for Jodhpur and Raipur; Best FM 95 (Asianet Communications) for Kannur and Trishur; Mango FM (Malayala Manorama) for Kannur; Club FM (Mathrubhumi) for Kannur; Tomoto FM (Pudhari Publications) for Kolhapur; Hello FM (Malar Publications) for Pondicherry and Trichy; Radio Dhamaal (B.A.G Infotainment) for Ranchi; Mantra FM (Shri Puran Multimedia) for Ranchi; Radio Mirchi (ENIL) for Raipur and Thiruvananthapuram; Radio City (MBPL) for Sangli; Kushal Global for Ajmer; Muthoot Finance for Chennai; PCM Cemments for Siliguri and Syntech for Siliguri.