BANDIPORA: To build a direct interface between the government and the journalists working at district and sub-district levels across Kashmir Division, the Press Information Bureau (PIB), Srinagar, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India today organized a media workshop “Vartalap” at district Bandipora.
The Chief Guest of the workshop was District Development Commissioner Bandipora Dr Owais Ahmad and the Guest of Honour was Additional Director General, PIB Srinagar and Chandigarh Rajinder Chaudhry.
Addressing the gathering, Dr Owais Ahmad thanked PIB for organizing the workshop at Bandipora. He said that journalists are doing their bit in contributing to society by being the eyes and ears of the administration. He said that the advent of social media has been both a boon and a bane as sometimes misinformation spreads at a very fast rate and journalists can help in maintaining checks and balances regarding the same.
In his keynote address, Chaudhry thanked the district administration Bandipora for their support in organizing the workshop. He said Vartalap is a two-way communication and the purpose of the workshop is to reach out to media at far-flung places. He added that the work of the government is greatly eased due to the efforts of the media as it acts like the eyes and ears of the government.
Chaudhry gave a detailed presentation on the structure and working of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the various media units that come under it. He said journalists should make maximum use of the information provided by the media units as it will help them in seeing the complete picture. He further said that besides disseminating information from the government, PIB also takes notice of news that is reported at the local and regional levels and conveys it to the higher authorities for redressal of grievances.
In his welcome address, Joint Director (Media and Communication) PIB Srinagar Qazi Salman thanked the journalists for their attendance at the workshop. Besides describing the role and responsibility of PIB, he expressed that media has undergone a tremendous change in the recent past and the mode of consumption of news has changed dramatically. This has led to hyper-consumption of news and that makes the role of local journalists all the more important, he asserted. He said that the purpose of Vartalap is to develop a connection with local journalists so that a healthy working relationship is formed between the media and the government.
In his concluding remarks, Chaudhry said that journalists should come forward with their genuine demands and seek help from the government for the redressal of their problems.
The proceedings of the workshop were conducted by Deputy Director (Media and Communication) PIB Srinagar Tariq Ahmad Rather. Media and Communication Officer, PIB Srinagar Majid Pandit presented the vote of thanks.
The technical sessions were followed by interactive question-answer sessions in which journalists talked to the experts and cleared their doubts regarding various schemes and programmes. The journalists also thanked PIB for organizing the workshop and expressed hope that more such workshops will be conducted in the future.
