Journalists' welfare fund to be hiked: Deputy CM Govind Karjol

Mangaluru: The welfare fund for journalists will be increased considering the request of the Karnataka Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), Deputy Chief Minister Govind Karjol has said.

Speaking at the valedictory of the two-day 35th state conference of KUWJ here on Sunday, he said Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa has set apart Rs five crore for the welfare of journalists in the budget.

Karjol said he would personally try to get the fund increased to Rs 50 crore.

He wanted journalists to focus on issues in rural areas as it covers 70 per cent of the population in the country, majority of them farmers.

Development reporting should not only be limited to industries but to the farming sector also, he said.

The deputy chief minister also said the KUWJ should institute an award in the name of Mahatma Gandhi, who in the pre-independence era brought out ‘Young Indian’ and ‘Harijan’ which fostered the freedom movement.

Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel, former state ministers B Ramanath Rai and Krishna Palamer and MLC Ivan D’Souza also participated in the function.