45th foundation day of AMWJU ; Biswajit calls for balanced reporting
Source: The Sangai Express / DIPR

Imphal, September 16 2018: Information and Public Relations Minister Thongam Biswajit has called for balanced reporting in publishing news.

Speaking as the chief guest at the 45th foundation day celebration of All Manipur Working Journalists Union (AMWJU), held at Manipur Press Club today, Biswajit conveyed that as media is playing the role of a mediator, they should balance their news report before publishing them.

The Minister maintained that observing a foundation day is significant as it provides an opportunity to reflect on the past activities and at the same time provides chances to explore new challenges further.

He also recalled the evolution of journalism in Manipur.

Biswajit also lauded the contribution of the media fraternity despite facing numerous challenges.

He highlighted the challenges faced by media fraternity like viral fake news in social media, which make it tough for the media fraternity to verify the authenticity of the news.

Another challenge faced by the media fraternity is the creation of idea of Manipur and the biggest challenges faced by media fraternity is publishing constructive criticism, he claimed.

Media should play an important role adhering to its ethics in a democratic State as the essence of democracy lies in the effectiveness of media, he added.

The Minister also informed that the present Government, keeping in mind the welfare of the journalists, has already deposited Rs 10 crore in corpus fund and recently the Government has handed over its first ever financial assistance to three journalists under Manipur State Journalists Welfare Scheme of the Department of Information and Public Relations.

Biswajit also appealed to all to work collectively for the betterment of the society.

Attending the celebration, Consumer, Affairs and Public Distribution Minister Karam Shyam stated that in today's highly globalized world, information- related works of any local or National papers have become a part of education imparting knowledge to the public.

Any person, whether politician or belonging to any organisation, cannot be said to lead a meaningful life without sound and effective education, he added.

Highlighting the varied role of journalists in creating love, harmony and integration and at the same time, communal conflicts amongst the various ethnic groups, he said that journalists should be extra cautious in their activities by following the press code of ethics.

As a part of the celebration, veteran journalists, members of Editors Guild Manipur (EGM), former presidents and general secretaries of the union were also felicitated.

The foundation day was also attended by the Chairman and MD of Salai Holdings Pvt Ltd, N Samarjit Singh, veteran journalists, members of EGM amongst other.

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