Deputy Commissioner Bandipora Dr Owais Ahmad on Wednesday held an interaction with media persons of the district at Forest Training School Chitternar.
SSP Bandipora Lakshya Sharma, Additional District Development Commissioner Ali Afsar Khan, Joint Director Planning Imtiyaz Ahmad, Nodal Officer Coordination M A Hakak, DFO Mudassir Mahmood and District Information Officer Jahangeer Akhoon were also present on the occassion.
On the occasion, the representatives of various print and electronic media organizations interacted with the DC and discussed several issues of public interest. They also briefed the DC about the difficulties they face while covering events at ground level and put forth the demand for the establishment of a press club at district headquarter Bandipora.
The DC assured the media persons that their genuine demands, including the establishment of a press club, will be considered on priority. Dr Owais directed the District Information Officer Jahangir Akhoon and Nodal Officer Coordination M Ashraf Hakaak to identify a space for the establishment of a media facilitation centre at an earliest.
Speaking on the occasion, the DC emphasized the importance of media in the overall development of the district and also in highlighting the initiatives of the Government aimed at curbing the menace of drug abuse and said the role of media is indispensable in holding administration accountable for effective governance.
He also urged the media persons to play a proactive role in disseminating the information on government schemes meant to give livelihood/self-employment opportunities to the youth.
At the outset, DC said that the media is the important and fourth pillar of Democracy, helping the district administration to perform more accurately and efficiently. He said the media works as an interface between government and public.
The DC urged the media fraternity to follow journalism ethics in letter and spirit while performing in the field and ensure quality journalism is displayed by each one of them.
He assured media persons full support from the District Administration in highlighting the genuine public issues for their prompt redressal.