Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore on Thursday stated in his statement to the media that newspapers which existed only on ‘paper’ but managed to get a chunk of government advertisements would be dis-empanelled.
Rathore is in the city to highlight the one-year rule of the BJP-led government and responded to a question on a report on the ‘largesse for non-existent newspapers’, from the Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity (DAVP). “There could be issues that not many newspapers publish enough copies. If such instances are brought to our notice, we will dis-empanel the newspapers immediately,” he further remarked.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday asserted that New Delhi had not threatened the Swedish newspaper Dagen Nyheter, for a possible retraction of comments on the Bofors issue, failing which President Pranab Mukherjee’s State visit could be affected. The claims were regarded to be baseless and vehemently denied.
Ahead of State visit to Sweden and Belarus, that has come under controversy owing to the controversy over Bofors, MEA officials not only refrained from answering the queries made by the President’s remarks, but also tried hard to shift the focus back, limiting to the “visit” itself. MEA officials stated that President Mukherjee is scheduled to visit a smart city in Sweden, Hammarby Sjöstad, where he will be briefed on the many aspects of a smart city, including civic governance.
The President’s delegation will include vice chancellors and directors of educational institutions and business leaders, say sources There will be bilateral agreements with a focus on academics, urban development and micro, small and medium enterprises and health sector. Also, on the agenda with Sweden, there is the possibility of a visa waiver for those carrying diplomatic passports.
In Belarus, the President is scheduled to address a joint business conference, along with his counterpart Alexander Lukashenko. On the agenda are agreements on the power sector, with SEBI, BIS and the Finance Ministry.
Tags: Rajyavardhan Rathore
