World Radio Day 2025

Why in news?

• World Radio Day is celebrated on 13 February.
• The purpose of this day is to promote education, information and freedom of expression through radio.
• This year, in 2025, the theme of World Radio Day is-
  • “Radio and Climate Change: A Powerful Tool for Climate Action”

History of Radio:

• Radio came into existence commercially in the early 1920s.
• By the year 1950s, radio and broadcasting systems became common around the world.
• In the year 2011, UNESCO member countries declared 13 February as World Radio Day.
  • It was adopted as an international event by the United Nations General Assembly in 2013.

Importance of Radio:

• Radio is considered to be one of the most widely used mediums around the world.
• According to the United Nations, radio has "the power to influence how society views diversity.
• It serves as a platform for all voices to speak.

How does radio work?

• It works by transmitting and receiving radio waves, which are a type of electromagnetic radiation.
• Electricity flowing into the transmitter antenna makes electrons vibrate up and down.
  • This produces radio waves.
• Radio waves have a frequency, which is the number of waves that pass a given point per second.
  • AM radio uses kilohertz (kHz) to measure frequency.
  • FM radio uses megahertz (MHz) to measure frequency.

Radio in India:

• Radio broadcasting in India began in the early 1920s.
• The first program was broadcast in 1923 by the Radio Club of Bombay.
• Year Established in 1956, All India Radio (AIR) is one of the largest radio networks in the world.
• On 3 July 2001, Radio City Bangalore launched, becoming the first private FM radio station.

Invention of Radio:

• Radio was invented by Guglielmo Marconi.
• He invented the radio transmitter in the 1890s.
  • However, Jagadish Chandra Bose was the first to demonstrate the scientific principles behind the capture of radio waves.
    • He is often referred to as the father of wireless telecommunication.