SP leader seeks insurance cover for UP journalists

Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly and senior Samajwadi Party leader, Ram Govind Chaudhary, has urged Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to provide Rs 50 lakh insurance cover to journalists in the state as they are also risking their lives to keep people informed during the coronavirus outbreak.

In a letter to the Chief Minister, Chaudhary said that journalists work as a bridge between the government and the public, and to safeguard such 'warriors' was the responsibility of the government.

He wrote that Rs 50 lakh insurance cover for journalists belonging to the print media, electronic media and digital media should be given by the government.

The insurance benefit must cover accredited as well as non-accredited journalists, he said.

Chaudhary also asked the Chief Minister to modify the guidelines pertaining to expenditure of the MLA funds, so that MLAs can spend their local area development funds on the welfare of media persons too. IANS