ISRO has allocated an additional 16 megahertz of bandwidth for HD broadcasts
Sherab Lhamo
More than 13,000 Dish TV users in the country connected to the South Asia Satellite (SAS) will be able to watch BBS channels in High Definition (HD) by the end of October.
Currently, rural communities receive broadcasts in Standard Definition (SD).
HD transmission for cable television subscribers through multi-service operators, NetCom Bhutan Limited and Drukcom Private Limited, was launched on July 26 last year.
The initiative is part of a broader collaboration between GovTech and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
The two organisations signed a Joint Plan of Action (JPoA) on March 21 this year. Following this, a Joint Working Group was formed with relevant representatives from both sides.
During a meeting on September 6, 2024, the Joint Working Group reviewed ongoing bilateral space cooperation and mapped out future initiatives outlined in the JPoA.
Following a request from GovTech, ISRO allocated an additional 16 megahertz (MHz) of bandwidth on the SAS, which will enable the upgrade of two Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS) HD channels for Dish TV users.
A GovTech official said that this added bandwidth enhances communication capacity on the satellite, GovTech currently uses it for disaster communication, broadcasting TV and radio channels, and connecting seven remote schools.
JPoA has identified 10 cooperative areas including workshops for government officials on the use of satellite data for evidence-based policy-making, sharing of appropriate data using ISRO satellites for developing applications across sectors and allocating slots for Bhutanese space scientists at training programmes similar to the UNispace Nanosatellite Assembly and Training programme conducted by ISRO.
The plans also include collaboration between the College of Science and Technology and the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in Thiruvananthapuram, India focusing on capacity-building in space science and exploring nano-satellite projects between students from both countries.
The GovTech official said that the goal of the plan is to implement these activities within a three-year time frame, with possible time extension.
The Joint Working Group will hold regular meetings to oversee and supervise the implementation of the planned activities.