Lok Sabha Question No. 2294 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-08
Subject: Suspension of Newspapers from Receiving Advertisements
Ministry: INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
Asked by: PONNUSAMY VENUGOPAL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2294 TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.03.2018

## SUSPENSION OF NEWSPAPERS FROM RECEIVING ADVERTISEMENTS

## 2294. DR. P. VENUGOPAL:

Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state:

- (a) Whether the Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity (DAVP) has suspended 51 newspapers from getting any Government advertisement for two months;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c)  whether  the  majority  of  these  newspapers  had  been  suspended  after  the  Press Council of India found them to have indulged in either paid news or breaching the norms of journalistic ethics; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  INFORMATION  AND BROADCASTING {COL RAJYAVARDHAN RATHORE (Retd.)}

- (a) to (d) Yes, Madam. After censure by Press Council of India (PCI) for indulging in paid news or for violation of various Norms of Journalistic Conduct, Directorate of Advertising  and  Visual  Publicity  (DAVP)  has  suspended  the  empanelment  of  51 newspapers on 13.9.2017, disqualifying them from getting any Government advertisements  for  two  months,  i.e.  for  the  period  13.9.2017  to  12.11.2017  under clause 25 (d) of the Print Media Advertisement Policy of Government of India - 2016.

The details of the nature of breach/violation for which these newspapers have been censured by PCI are given in Annexure.

********

## ANNEXURE

## ANNEXURE AS REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (d) of LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 2294 on 8.3.2018

## THE LIST OF NEWSPAPERS CENSURED BY PCI FOR BREACH OF THE NORMS OF JOURNALISTIC CONDUCT

|   S. No . | Code No.   | News Paper Name          | Place         | Reason for censure by PCI                    |
|-----------|------------|--------------------------|---------------|----------------------------------------------|
|         1 | 122412     | Maru Lahar               | Barmer        | Paid news                                    |
|         2 | -          | Paschimi Sandesh         | Muzaffarnagar | Paid news                                    |
|         3 | 131322     | Jan Madhyam              | Lucknow       | Paid news                                    |
|         4 | -          | Sachchai Abhi Tak        | Muzaffarnagar | Paid news                                    |
|         5 | 130236     | Awam-e-Hind              | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|         6 | -          | Total Haryana News       | Sirsa         | Irresponsible & an act of malafide reporting |
|         7 | -          | Bharat Sameep            | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|         8 | 130145     | B P N Times              | Gwalior       | Paid news                                    |
|         9 | 128345     | Meri Dilli (D)           | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|        10 | 123060     | Meri Dilli (W)           | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|        11 | 120113     | Desh Ki Dharti           | Kota          | Paid news                                    |
|        12 | 129936     | Yash Bharat              | Katni         | Paid news                                    |
|        13 | 128348     | Raj Express              | Bhopal        | Paid news                                    |
|        14 | 131395     | Dainik Pushp Savera      | Agra          | Paid news                                    |
|        15 | 122147     | Raigarh Sandesh          | Raigarh       | Paid news                                    |
|        16 | 120854     | Veer Arjun               | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|        17 | -          | Jag Utthan               | Delhi         | Paid news                                    |
|        18 | 123094     | Prabhat Kiran            | Indore        | Published false news                         |
|        19 | 127520     | Hari Bhoomi              | Raipur        | Paid news                                    |
|        20 | -          | Maharashtra Shakti Shali | Ulhasnagar    | Breach the norms of journalistic ethics      |

| Express   |
|-----------|

|   21 | 129726   | Aaj Samaj          | Delhi                     | Cast severe insinuation against the complainant and no justification for publication of impugned news item.   |
|------|----------|--------------------|---------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|   22 | 122856   | Dainik Jagran      | Delhi                     | Cast severe insinuation against the complainant and no justification for publication of impugned news item.   |
|   23 | -        | Balwas Times       | Indore                    | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   24 | 128923   | Raj Express        | Indore                    | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   25 | 130330   | Dainik Raj Express | Ujjain                    | Inaccurate & disrespectful news reports.                                                                      |
|   26 | 120129   | Jan Nayak          | Kota                      | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   27 | 120120   | Seema Sandesh      | (Rajasthan) Sriganganagar | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   28 | -        | Seema sandesh      | (Rajasthan) Jaipur        | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   29 | -        | Rashtra Ka Vachan  | Rajasthan                 | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   30 | -        | Morning News       | Jaipur                    | Paid news                                                                                                     |
|   31 | -        | Railvarta          | Jhansi                    | Published false & concocted impugned news items                                                               |
|   32 | 127445   | Ashoka Express     | Delhi                     | Breach the norms of journalistic ethics in publishing obscene photograph                                      |
|   33 | -        | People Observer    | Satna                     | Breach the norms of journalistic ethics in publishing baseless and maligning news items                       |
|   34 | 130692   | Prakash Kunj       | Sikar                     | Paid news                                                                                                     |

|   35 | -      | Bureau Times       | Delhi       | Serious misconduct in demanding money of publishing advertisement without authorisation.   |
|------|--------|--------------------|-------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|   36 | 127065 | Shree India        | Banda       | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   37 | 132128 | Bundelkhend Live   | Banda       | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   38 | 400054 | Dinakaran          | Madurai     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   39 | 320180 | Odisha Bhaskar     | Bhubaneswar | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   40 | -      | Tamil Murasu       | Madurai     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   41 | -      | Pravesh Samvad     | Sagar       | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   42 | -      | Chambal Surkhi     | Morena      | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   43 | 122042 | Chingari           | Bijnore     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   44 | -      | Dainik kota bureau | Jhalwar     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   45 | -      | City times         | Lucknow     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   46 | -      | Semriya Express    | Satna       | Insinuated the character of the complainant                                                |
|   47 | -      | Tarun Mitra        | Lucknow     | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   48 | -      | Metro byte         | Jaipur      | Paid news                                                                                  |
|   49 | -      | Sughav Vani        | Panipat     | News items false & intended to blackmail                                                   |
|   50 | 100809 | The Times of India | Bhubaneswar | Aggrieved by a news item & newspaper not admitting the mistakes                            |
|   51 | 200541 | Maharashtra Times  | Pune        | Using title registered in the name of other/person                                         |