Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW), the international public broadcaster from the Netherlands, has established a partnership with first and foremost North Bengal and Sikkim FM station, Radio Misty 94.3FM. In the near future Radio Misty will air a variety of RNW music programmes ranging from European pop charts to classical, jazz and world music but also RNW radio books.

After a long-term presence in India with short wave and satellite radio broadcasts, RNW now expands its activities in India. Considering the rapid growth of the number of FM-stations and multimedia platforms in India, RNW is glad to establish a mutually beneficial partnership with Radio Misty 94.3FM and provide them with music and spoken-word programmes.

Radio Misty is the first North Bengal and Sikkim FM station for the local people and has a reach of 80 km. The aim of Radio Misty is to connect the local people with more interactive and innovative shows. "This meets the goals of RNW as well, because we aim at multicultural interaction between different (local) peoples and cultures in the world. One way of doing this is through programmes that interest listeners internationally," says Jan Hoek, RNW’s Director General.

Jan Hoek states that the new partnership marks the start of reaching a new public via radio stations in India. "We are very pleased with the partnership with Radio Misty FM. The swift and decisive way in which we came to this arrangement promises a bright future for our cooperation with this dynamic station."

Amitabh Srivastava, RNW Country Manager for India says: "This partnership is our entry into Indian airspace through radio affiliation and getting the clear message that ‘RNW has arrived in India’. After getting more then 3000 partners globally, we hope more dynamic Indian stations like Misty will be benefiting with informative and entertaining programming through us."

Radio Misty 94.3FM chief executive officer Mr Nishant Mittal says: "It’s great that we are the first FM station in India to partner with Radio Netherlands Worldwide. We hope this new venture between Radio Misty and RNW will open a new chapter. It will bring a lot of innovative programmes to people of North Bengal and Sikkim. We look forward to share new ideas in programming."