6 new educational TV channels for school children from next week: Minister

As a first step of the programme to launch 20 television channels dedicated to education, six new television channels and a radio frequency will be launched next week, Education Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris said.

Addressing a meeting held at the Mass Media Ministry today, he said the 'Vision FM' radio station, which will be launched in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation.

These educational channels are planned to be launched as never before in history as full-time, sustainable channels and television channels in association with Sri Lanka Telecom through PEO TV, he said.

So far, more than 7,000 recordings of these programmes have been completed with the intervention of the National Institute of Education, Minister Peiris said. 

He further said, after the meeting of the committee chaired by State Minister Susil Premajayantha, the final decisions regarding the programme line up and the relevant broadcasting activities will be taken, will commence from next week.

The Ministry has done a silent process and done a great deal of work in the past to launch educational channels and said it would use the adjournment debate in Parliament next Thursday to clarify the matter.

He added that all decisions regarding the broadcasting of educational channels should be taken soon, in addition to the programmes such as Guru Gedara and e-Thaksalawa which are currently on air. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)