Bengaluru, February 03 (Karnataka News):
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said that the role of the media is great in exposing the ins and outs of society through critical notes and bringing them to the people.
Today, Karnataka Media Academy organized the annual awards ceremony for 2023 and 2024 at the G.N. Tata Hall of the Indian Institute of Science. Speaking at the event, he said that the media, which is the fourth pillar of democracy, has a great responsibility. It is special that the media, which reaches the people through their writing and reports, is serving the people and serving the country. It is a matter of happiness that journalists have been awarded with the award due to the hard work of the media and the sacrifices of their families, he said.
Through the Department of Information and Public Relations, journalists are being given TEASAR, Mohare Hana Mantraya, Development Journalism, Environmental Journalism, Raghuram Shetty Vadderse and film awards and subsidies for films are being given to filmmakers. The facility of providing bus passes to rural journalists was announced in the budget for 2024-25, which has already been implemented. He assured that health insurance facility for journalists and allotment of plots to eligible journalists will be provided in the coming days.
It is everyone’s duty to control the recent increase in fake news. He said that he will start a journalism institute that will provide modern journalism education.
At the same time, the Karnataka Media Academy released the annual award winners’ book for the years 2023 and 2024.
Karnataka Media Academy President Mrs. Ayesha Khanam gave an introductory speech and said that the Media Academy has been organizing many programs like Women’s Budget, Internship Workshop for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students, Annual Awards for Journalists etc. This time the lifetime and annual award amount has been doubled compared to the last time. Programs will be designed for journalists to move forward with the use of new technology. Efforts will be made to make the dream of the Chief Minister of a just society come true. The Academy is actively working on women empowerment, control of fake news, and implementing welfare schemes for journalists. Most of the journalism colleges have closed down, he said, and the Academy is trying to bring this field and journalists to the forefront.
Speaking at the event, Chief Minister’s Media Advisor K.V. Prabhakar said that the journalism sector is being affected by speculative journalism and social media. Media people should give a boost to the sector by using new technologies. Bus pass facilities are being provided to rural journalists. The government is also committed to providing health insurance to them in the future, he said.
The special lifetime achievement awards for 2023 and 2024 were given to senior journalist A.Ch. Shivanna and Wartha Bharati editor Abdu Salam Puttige respectively. The journalists who received the annual awards for 2023 and 24 and the Karnataka Media Academy Endowment Awards were honored.
The program was attended by the Chief Minister’s Secretary and Secretary of the Information and Public Relations Department, Mrs. B.B. Kaveri, Commissioner of the Information and Public Relations Department, Hemanth M. Nimbalkar, Secretary of the Karnataka Media Academy, Sahana M., along with senior officials of the Information Department, senior journalists, and dignitaries.