Arunachal Governor, CM Pema Khandu greet media on National Press Day

OUR CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh Governor Brig (Retd) Dr B D Mishra and Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Monday conveyed their greetings to the media fraternity of the State on the occasion of National Press Day to be celebrated on Tuesday.

The Governor expressed hope that the celebration would instill new zeal and passion for supporting the unity and integrity of the nation amongst the members of the fourth estate.

In his message Mishra said, "Media is the nerve of the society. It plays a vital role in dissemination of information to the masses based on facts and truth. Being proactive promoters and partners in developmental programmes, media has to play its role for enabling a just and corruption free administration and well informed citizenry."

The Governor said that during the initial stages of COVID-19 pandemic, the members of the media fraternity were in the forefront with the Covid warriors.

"With their energetic contribution, we as 'Team Arunachal' have been able to contain the spread of the dreaded virus," he said while expressing confidence that the media fraternity would continue its excellent work for the social uplift, particularly helping the weak, poor, downtrodden, women and children and the preservation of the environment for a better and progressive tomorrow, for all.

"On this special occasion, I call upon all my fellow citizens to uphold the freedom of Press," the Governor said in his message.

Khandu wished the journalist fraternity of the State on the occasion of National Press Day celebrated to commemorate the constitution of the Press Council of India (PCI) in the year 1966. Khandu in a message reiterated the government's commitment to welfare of the small but vibrant and growing media fraternity of the State. He called upon the working journalists to analyze the role of media in a democracy by serving as an agency for the people to access information and help strengthening and supporting the democratic process.

"As a committed friend of the press, I am happy that despite various hurdles the media fraternity in Arunachal Pradesh has never ceased to grow. In fact it has grown in leaps and bounds despite the fact that resources to run media houses have remained stagnant over the years. The least I can do is appreciate the zeal of our journalist friends to serve the people as the fourth pillar of democracy," Khandu said.

He asserted that without a vibrant, fearless and aware media fraternity democracy cannot survive in its truest sense. Khandu also admitted that media today faces various challenges optimized by the digital boom. Appreciating the theme 'New Media – Journalism in the present era: Challenges, Lessons and Future' for this year's workshop, he expressed hope that the state journalists, both old and new, would retrospect, introspect and evolve with a positive way forward without flaunting the basic fundamentals of the profession.

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