PEMRA imposes restriction on 24 radio stations

BBC World Service is disappointed that 24 out of its 34 FM partner stations in Pakistan have been asked to cease broadcasting BBC Urdu Service's news bulletins by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).

The BBC believes that the 24 FM partner stations completed all the required paperwork for PEMRA last October and calls on the Pakistan authorities to allow the stations to resume BBC Urdu news bulletins so that audiences in Pakistan can have access to the BBC's impartial and editorially independent news.

The BBC is concerned that the millions of radio listeners in Pakistan who turn to the BBC for unbiased and objective news and information will be the most affected by this decision.