Islamabad: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar announced a new health insurance scheme for journalists, which aims to benefit 30,000 media workers across Pakistan. This initiative was discussed during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting, chaired by Senator Syed Ali Zafar.
According to Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the health insurance plan will be rolled out in two phases, with the initial phase including five to ten thousand journalists. Minister Tarar also mentioned the clearance of 1.6 billion rupees for the news industry under the current government and advocated for the abolition of the 10 percent tax on newsprint.
He emphasized the ministry’s commitment to improving the financial conditions of reporters and media workers, advocating against exploitation and for fair wages. Additionally, Tarar addressed the transparency in advertisement distribution to private TV channels and the need to regulate dummy newspapers in collaboration with the All Pakistan Newspapers Society.