Himachal govt to prepare policy for web media

Himachal Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has announced that his government is mulling over the idea of introducing a policy for web media. The Department of Information and Public Relations in Himachal Pradesh will have the responsibility of drafting the policy for web media.

Shimla: Himachal government will formulate policy for web media. Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has said that according to changing times, a policy is needed for web media, which is an important part of media. From 2013, the trend of web portals in the state has been witnessed to be accelerated. In the Corona period, there was a sudden surge in the web portals.

There are around 500 web portals currently running in Himachal. Since there is no formal rules and regulations etc. at the local level to run the portal, at the sub-divisional level people are taking to the web media and running their own portals and sites. Not only this, but live streaming on Facebook also increased. The programmes of cabinet meetings and other leaders including CM is also being done live on Facebook. This has triggered a debate on the credibility of web media. To regulate all such aspects, it has become necessary to bring about a policy for web media. This is the reason why the Himachal government has taken a step in this direction.

The Department of Information and Public Relations in Himachal Pradesh remains in direct contact with the newspapers and digital media. The same department will have the responsibility of drafting the policy for web media. Following the government's guidelines, the exercise for the policy has already started. However, the Central Government has not yet formulated a concrete policy for web media.

The state governments are also studying all aspects of digital media. Although all of the already active newspapers are running their own news websites, there is no policy for the portals. Himachal government will focus on what kind of filter should be applied for these portals. Study of technical aspects will be emphasized along with content. The portal will be promoted only after checking the credibility of the content. The most important of the technical aspects will be the number of hits found on the news. The big thing is that the web portal can be given the status of an industry on the lines of PM Narendra Modi's Slogan 'Vocal for Local'.

There will be a policy for web portals on the same lines as registration for the industry. It will be taken on the lines of a small enterprise, not on the lines of a media group so that conditions can be met at the local level itself. At the moment, the department will exercise at the above points.

Similarly, first, such a definition of the web portal will be decided in which all the points can be included. According to the definition, the web media group will be the criterion for the policy. Web media, web portals, digital media, live coverage etc. will all be defined. The way Internet access has increased and news portals have flooded at the local level, formulating policies for web media will not prove to be an easy task. Deciding what kind of filter should be put in place so that serious institutions can move forward in this field is not less than a challenge. The big thing is that once the policy is prepared, the government will be under pressure to advertise to all these web media groups.

As far as Himachal Pradesh is concerned, it is not possible to spend a huge amount on advertisement due to the weak state of the economy. Then the situation will also have to be clarified with regard to the recognition and other facilities of the people associated with web media. All these issues have to be addressed while the policy is being prepared.

According to the Director of Information and Public Relations Department Harbans Singh, this is being discussed after the announcement of Chief Minister Jairam Thakur to prepare a policy for web media. However, since the web media has been active in Himachal since 2013, the policy is being sought. The other important thing is that before finalizing the web policy in the state, the Himachal government will also study the web media policy implemented in other states and will implement its policy on the basis of merits.