The Telangana Media Academy asserted that the State Government has initiated several steps for the welfare of journalists working in different print and electronic media organisations across the State.
Academy chairman Allam Narayana clarified that the K. Chandrasekhar Rao-led government has fulfilled a majority of promises made to journalists including health cards and accreditation cards. The Chief Minister had for the first time announced allocation of ₹100 crore for taking up housing scheme for journalists. Responding to charges made by Telangana State Union of Working Journalists that journalists were being denied admission into several hospitals, Mr. Narayana said the government had taken initiative in providing free treatment to journalists and their families in the government and corporate hospitals on a par with employees. In fact, the ceiling of ₹1 lakh which was existing in the past was lifted while the government had taken steps to include the parents of the journalists under the scheme.
As against the 12,000 accreditation cards issued to journalists in the erstwhile united State, the government took steps to issue accreditation to more than 16,800 journalists including those working in the desks. While health cards were issued to accredited journalists, steps were being initiated to cover all the journalists under the scheme. He expressed concern that little over 11,000 accredited journalists enrolled their names under the health scheme and exhorted all the working journalists to take advantage of the health cards.
The government had set up a corpus fund amounting to ₹100 crore for the welfare of journalists and had released ₹34.5 crore so far. A total of ₹1.51 crore was paid to families of 151 journalists who died in harness, he said.
