By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 21 Feb: Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Apurva Chandra took stock of the various media units in Uttarakhand during his two-day tour of the hilly state. The Secretary met officials of the Press Information Bureau, Regional Outreach Bureau and Prasar Bharati on Saturday. He encouraged officials to use innovative ways to widen the reach of the media to educate the common man about public policy.
The Secretary took a tour of the facilities at the Doordarshan Kendra and remarked that perhaps Dehradun was the only place across the nation that housed both units of Prasar Bharati, i.e. Doordarshan and All India Radio, in the same premises, according them economies of scope. He spoke about the Ministry’s effort to increase the footprint of the Public Broadcaster in Uttarakhand.
Chandra also said that the Ministry is working towards providing relief to families of journalists who have lost their lives in the pandemic. The Journalist Welfare Scheme provides for aid of Rs 5 lakh for the stressed families in such cases. About two months ago, Rs 6 Crore were transferred under the scheme to more than 100 families across the country.
Chandra also spoke about an ESIC scheme, where in case of the death of an employee due to COVID, the family would receive 90% of the daily wages for a lifetime. The Secretary advised the officials to increase the rich cultural content of the hilly state and broadcast it across the country.
