India Express Buzz
Wednesday, December 03, 2008 2:16 PM IST
All eyes on Azhagiri’s announcement
Express News Service
First Published : 03 Dec 2008 01:38:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 03 Dec 2008 01:13:21 PM IST
MADURAI: Cable
TV operators in Madurai who got caught in the crossfire between the Sun TV Network and the Royal Cable Vision (RCV) network following hostilities between M K Azhagiri and the Maran brothers are hopeful that the war of attrition would now come to an end, as the estranged members of the State’s first family have buried their hatchets.
A M Kannan, president, Madurai Cable TV Operators Association, told to this website's newspaper that they had received the much disputed decoders on Tuesday for transmission of Sun Network channels. He said that majority of the cable operators had shifted to RCV and with 30 Multiple System Operators (MSO) in the city and that 450 cable operators were functioning. The SCV operators numbered only about a 100, he added. He said that Azhagiri had asked the cable operators to await a surprise announcement when he returns to Madurai on Wednesday.
Following the family feud ending on a happy note in the presence of DMK patriarch Karunanidhi on Monday, the TV operators are happy that they would be free from pressure. President of the Cable TV Guild Association, Pandy, expressed the hope that the SCV would take over cable network in Madurai and said that a final decision could be taken only after the arrival of Azhagiri. Manager of RCV, Prabhu, however, refused to comment.
Meanwhile in Coimbatore, the ongoing tug of war between Coimbatore unit of Tamil Nadu Cable Operators Welfare Association (TNCOWA) attached to Arasu Cable Corporation and SCV operators is expected to come to an end.
P Krishnakumar, district coordinator, TNCOWA, said that the reunion of Kalanithi Maran and Dayanidhi Maran with the Karunanidhi family had nothing to do with the Arasu Cable Corporation, a government undertaking. However, SCV operators may change their mind in the changed situation and stop threatening Arasu Cable TV operators, he said.
In Tiruchy, a cable operator from Woraiyur, said: “We are happy over the reunion of the Chief Minister’s family. But I relay only SCV,’’ even as he recalled how he was ab*used for not relaying Sun TV programmes. An operator in Thillai Nagar said he would relay the Arasu programmes if Sun TV was linked to it.