CHRN-AM

On May 16, the CRTC approved an application by Radio Humsafar Inc. to operate a commercial AM ethnic radio station in Montréal. The station would operate on 1610 kHz with a full-time power of 1,000 watts. It indicated that it would adhere to a condition of licence requiring it to direct ethnic programming to at least ten cultural groups in at least eight different languages each broadcast week. Its service would target principally the South Asian community, with a focus on the Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities. Humsafar also indicated that of the programming broadcast each broadcast week, 126 hours would be devoted to ethnic programming, 84 hours of which would be third-language programming. It also proposed to broadcast 42 hours of English-language programming each broadcast week. Radio Humsafar submitted that it wished to move from the SCMO platform to the AM band due to limitations of the SCMO technology, given the reach and access of this platform, and to be in a position to serve the additional communities beyond the Punjabi- and English-speaking ethnic groups. It indicated that if it were granted an AM frequency, it would operate its SCMO service in parallel with the AM station for a period of three months, after which time it would cease to operate its unlicensed service. Radio Humsafar was owned by Kamaljit Kaur (50%) and Jasvir Singh Sandhu (50%) and controlled by Jasvir Singh Sandhu. The licence would expire August 31, 2020.

CHRN Radio Humsafar began broadcasting in January. For the record, CJWI had used the 1610 frequency between 2002 and 2009. It then moved to CFMB’s old frequency of 1410 kHz. Radio Humsafar had applied for an AM station in 2011 but withdrew the application.

On February 9, the CRTC approved the application by Radio Humsafar Inc. to change the authorized contours of CHRN by relocating its transmitter site. The change was necessary since the engineering team had found after various studies and tests that the original transmitter site was no longer viable.