I&B Ministry hikes advertisement rates for print media by 25 pc
New Delhi, Jan 8: The government has hiked by 25 per cent the rates at which the Bureau of Outreach and Communication releases its advertisements to the print media.
The government said the decision will be of great benefit especially to the medium and small newspapers, including a large number of such papers in regional and vernacular languages. The opposition Congress, however, termed it as "yet another tactic" of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to try and change the narrative in its favour.
In the last such revision in 2013, rates were increased by 19 per cent over and above the rates of 2010.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has taken a decision to revise the advertisement rates for print media by announcing a hike of 25 per cent over and above the existing rate structure for advertisement in print media by the Bureau of Outreach and Communication, an official statement said.
The decision is with effect from Tuesday and will be valid for a period of three years.
The government said the decision has been taken on the basis of recommendations of the 8th Rate Structure Committee constituted by the I&B Ministry that took into account several factors including increase in price of newsprint, processing charges and other factors which go into computation of advertisement rates.
Reacting to the government decision, Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi said: "Since 2014, we have seen how the BJP has tried to manipulate the media, has tried to silence the media and believed that they can buy the media because they are in power and because they have the power of money with them."
However, little do they realise that journalism cannot be silenced, media cannot be bought, and sooner or later they will have to pay a heavy price for it, she said.
"So, it is yet another tactic of the BJP, which is losing ground in 2019, to try and change the narrative towards its own self. They are going to fail spectacularly," the Congress leader said.
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Kerala: 'Kallakkadal' red alert revised to orange warning
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services on Saturday withdrew a 'red alert' issued for 'Kallakkadal' in the coastal areas of Kerala and the south Tamil Nadu coast and revised it to an 'orange alert'.
'Kallakkadal' is a phenomenon of sudden sea swells causing rough waves in coastal areas.
As part of the phenomenon, the low-lying areas of the Kerala coast are likely to experience rough sea and sea surge due to extremely strong waves of 0.5 meters to 1.5 meters till 11.30 pm on Sunday, the INCOIS said.
The low-lying coastal areas of south Tamil Nadu are also likely to experience a similar situation and high waves of 0.5 meters to 1.8 metres may cause sea surge there till tomorrow night, the agency warned.
INCOIS, the central agency that issues weather warnings for fishermen in the country, advised people to safely moor their fishing vessels in the harbour.
Authorities advised people to continue their caution and avoid trips to the beach and completely stay away from activities at sea.
The term 'Kallakkadal' literally means a sea that comes suddenly like a thief.
INCOIS has earlier said that the swells result from strong winds in the southern part of the Indian Ocean at certain times, and that they occur suddenly without any particular indications or warning which is why it is named 'Kallakkadal'.
