SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has no dedicated welfare fund for journalists and no application has been received from the Union Territory under the Centre’s Journalist Welfare Scheme for recommendation to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the government has told the Legislative Assembly.
The Information Department said it would sympathetically examine a proposal to establish a dedicated J&K Journalists Welfare Fund to provide structured assistance in cases of disability, terminal illness, accidental injury or death.
The disclosure came in response to an unstarred question raised by MLA Ranbir Singh Pathania on the welfare and social-security framework available to journalists, including stringers, freelancers, non-accredited, district-level and digital-media journalists.
At present, the main journalist-specific financial assistance available to journalists in J&K is under the Journalist Welfare Scheme issued by the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on 1 April 2023.
The government said the central scheme covers both accredited and non-accredited journalists, including freelancers, as well as their families in cases of extreme hardship.
Under the scheme, one-time assistance of up to Rs 5 lakh is admissible in the event of death, up to Rs 5 lakh for permanent disability and up to Rs 3 lakh for treatment of major ailments not covered under the Central Government Health Scheme or insurance.
Journalists from J&K are eligible to apply through the Press Information Bureau or the UT Information Department, with eligible cases capable of being forwarded to the Union Ministry with due recommendation.
However, the government said no application had been received by the Department of Information and Public Relations, J&K, under JWS-2023 for recommendation to the Ministry.
The department also clarified that the 2023 Journalist Welfare Scheme is a national scheme and is not specific to J&K. As a result, the government did not provide any J&K-specific figures for funds sanctioned, applications processed or assistance released during the last five financial years.
On the question of non-accredited, district-level and digital-media journalists being excluded from welfare assistance, the government said financial assistance under the central scheme is available to accredited as well as non-accredited journalists, including freelancers, subject to the provisions of the scheme.
However, the government acknowledged that J&K does not currently have its own dedicated welfare fund for journalists.
The proposed UT fund would require the government to finalise its corpus, funding pattern and arrangements for recurring replenishment. The reply said the funding could involve UT budgetary support as well as contributions from media houses or journalist organisations.
The government said detailed guidelines would also have to be framed covering eligibility, income criteria and the quantum of assistance, with safeguards against duplication with the central scheme and employers’ liabilities.
For administering the proposed fund, the government said an institutional mechanism, preferably a registered society or trust with representation from journalist associations, could be considered. The proposal would also require the concurrence of the Finance Department.
The government made clear that any dedicated UT fund would not absolve media houses of their existing statutory obligations towards employed journalists.
It said responsibility for service conditions, wages, gratuity, provident fund, employment-injury insurance and medical care rests primarily with employers or media houses under applicable laws.
These include the Working Journalists and Other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955; the Employees’ Compensation Act, 1923; the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948; the Employees’ Provident Funds Act, 1952; the Code on Wages, 2020; and the Code on Social Security, 2020.
The government said journalists whose employers do not provide health insurance can avail health cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year under Ayushman Bharat/SEHAT, which is available to residents of J&K, including families of media persons.
It also cited the Atal Pension Yojana as an available pension option for eligible citizens aged 18 to 40 years who have a bank or post office savings account. The scheme provides a fixed monthly pension from the age of 60, depending on the subscriber’s contribution.
The government said it remained committed to the welfare of media persons while ensuring that statutory obligations of employers are duly enforced.
