Media plays a vital role in driving a society on the right path and, hence, they (newspapers and TV channels) should refrain from unfair reporting and stress on publication of factual information, viewed noted persons here at the National Press Day observed on behalf of the National Journalists Welfare Board (NJWB) on Wednesday.
Presiding over the programme, former Prime Minister lal Bahadur Shastri’s son Sunil Shastri called upon journalists not to stop working for benefit of the society even as some problems being faced by them in the changing society.
State Human Rights Commission Working Chairman Justice Birakishore Mishra said journalists should understand a happening and its consequences before its publication.
On this occasion, editor of the ‘Dharitri’ and MP Tathagat Satpathy was conferred with the ‘Utkal Sambadik Ratna’ award. Similarly, ‘Young India’ editor Sagar Aluwalia, ‘Hindustan’ editor Ajay Shukla, ‘Bengal Editor’ chief editor Biplab Bhattacharya, NP news channel MD Binoy Roy, ‘UT Mirror’ ED Jay Singh, Journalist Association of India general secretary HK Sethi, Dada Saheb Phalke Foundation film magazine’s Ash Faquae Khopekar and ‘Sun Marg’ editor Gouranga Agrawal were felicitated with ‘Rashtriya Sambadik Gourab’ awards.
Besides, ‘Rabi Narayan Mohanty Smaraki Samman’, Gopal Mishra Smaraki Samman’ and ‘Barendra Krushna Smaraki Samman’ were given to meritorious students Ankita Rath, Sagarika Ray and Sunita Mohapatra, respectively.