Government brainstorms on sharing information through media

New Delhi: Stressing the importance of government's connect with public through media, Union minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said ministers, even those unfamiliar with the art of dealing with press, have to take lead and along with bureaucrats ensure that authentic information reaches people.

"Everybody amongst the ministerial team may not be to the same level familiar with the art of dealing with the media. Slowly everybody has to be nudged, because we live through the media, we communicate through the media," the Information and Broadcasting Minister said.

He expressed these views at a special workshop organised by his ministry to encourage bureaucrats to share information about government schemes more openly and effectively with the people.

"Your job is not propaganda, you are not trained for propaganda. The discipline of a civil servant is not to indulge in propaganda. In my field we can do it, you can't. Therefore your real job is that government centric information has to be put out," Jaitley told the officials.

He also stressed that in communicating the message and performance of the government, the political leaders have to play the leading role.

"If some of them get into the shell, then they are wasting an opportunity with no cost and of great importance. So everybody has to be nudged and persuaded to really become the face," he said.

Underscoring that political leaders have to lead from the front, Jaitley said that the bureaucracy too had a vital role to play in ensuring that authentic information is disseminated.

He said that it is difficult to expect civil servants to become the "face" as there are legitimate restraints but added that they could still play a key role in giving information about work done by the government.

He said that the information provided by civil servants may not find place in a prime time debates but it would definitely reach millions of people through various media platforms.

The workshop had been organised by the Press Information Bureau to ensure better synergy between senior officials in ministries, PS to ministers and PIB officials to improve the communication flow of the government.