Itanagar: Arunachal Pradesh deputy chief minister, Chowna Mein, on Thursday asserted that the state government is committed to look after the welfare of the media fraternity in the state.
Addressing the National Press Day celebration at Arunachal Press Club (APC) here, Mein said that the government had implemented many programs and policies for the welfare of journalists working in the state including introduction of journalists’ welfare corpus fund to assist working scribes and their family for medical treatment.
“Journalist pension scheme is under process and we are committed to implement it. Moreover, advertisement policy for newspapers is in place to support the media houses and funds for advertisement are allocated every year,” he said.
The deputy chief minister added that a separate advertisement policy for electronic media has been approved and the government had sanctioned funds for construction of the APC building, which was completed last year.
“Our government will continue to support and look into the welfare of the journalists serving in the state and together we will build a new Arunachal Pradesh,” Mein said.
Stating that media played a vital role in the growth of a society, Mein added that for a strong democracy, a strong media house and journalism is also essential, who without fear & favour, without partiality & biasness, delivers genuine news and correct information to the people.
“Media also acts as the mirror of the society, whose reports and stories reflect various aspects of the society. In other ways, what you broadcast or highlight also reflects the image of the society and creates such an image to the outside world regarding our society. That is where responsible journalism comes into play,” he said.
The deputy chief minister added that sometimes, critical and analytical reporting also helps to open the eyes of the government, and it is through the media that the government learns about the actual situation in different parts of the state.
“When we seriously ponder about the works of a journalist, it is not only challenging and but tough too especially, in a large state like Arunachal Pradesh where the climate and topography is difficult, where the places are unreachable and at some parts where people are still not so educated and the society is complex,” he pointed out.
Despite all the challenges and difficulties we faced in the state, the media had come a long way and grew into a big family, he added.
Information and Public Relation Minister Bamang Felix speaking on the occasion, urged upon the media persons to retrospect whether they are really performing their duties as per the laid down norms and ethics.
“Media should be committed for service to the society without any biases,” he said adding, the state government since 2013 tried its best to bring reformation in the media industry and many more plans and policies are in the pipeline.
Advisor to IPR Laisam Simai in his address lauded the media for doing wonderful jobs in the state despite all odds.
“Media in the state is growing from strength to strength and they have a key role in unlocking possibilities in socio-economic and political development in the state,” Simai pointed out.
During the event, senior journalist and chief editor of Arunachal Observer, Pradeep Kumar Behera, was conferred the ‘Lifetime Achievement’ award by the APC in recognition of his significant contributions to the development of journalism in the state.
The ceremony also featured accolades for outstanding achievements in journalism, including the Late Taro Chatung and V Ravindran Memorial Excellence in Journalism Awards.
In the realm of investigative, politics & governance, and human-interest journalism, Sangge Droma and Nanman Jugli of Arunachal Today and Topi Ete of NewsFy were honored with the awards for their exemplary work.
Due to the limited number of submissions from the print media for the V Ravindran Award, the same was canceled based on the advice of the jury members.
Among others, Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists (APUWJ) President Amar Sangno and APC vice-president Bengia Ajum shared their insights on the significance of the day.
They emphasized the crucial role and responsibilities of journalists in society, underlining the importance of their contributions to the field of journalism.
Also present on the occasion were, APC general secretary Damien Lepcha, his APUWJ counterpart Sonam Jelly and several senior members of the state media fraternity.
Also read: Dy CM Mein advocates Arunachal’s PSP potential at power conference
