Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government led by Chief Minister Mohan Majhi threw open the gates of Lok Seva Bhawan, the State Secretariat, to mediapersons on the first day in office, putting an end to the four-year restrictions imposed by the previous BJD regime.
It has now come up with fresh guidelines for ‘Secretariat Admission Pass’ for media entry into Lok Seva Bhawan for limited purpose.
On December 26, the I&PR department annulled a February 6, 2013, notification, stating that it does not adequately regulate the recommendation with respect to applications for secretariat entry pass of media personnel.
Journalists are now required to submit applications online. The entry pass will be issued to them following verification and endorsement by the department and subsequently approved by the Home department on e-Pravesh portal, the notification said.
The entry pass is for representatives of press/media, including editors, reporters, correspondents, journalists/freelance journalists, photo journalists and cameramen.
Eligibility
1. Editors of all I&PR empanelled daily newspapers/periodicals and news editors of TV channels having CBC rate contract.
2. All accredited journalists.
3. One state-level representative of each of the national news agencies duly authorised by the appropriate authority of the agency and one reporter/representative from a regional news agency having paying subscribers spread over not less than 10 districts of the state.
4. One journalist/reporter from each of the dailies empanelled with I&PR department under authorisation by respective editors.
5. Crew members, comprising one reporter and a cameraman, from each CBC empanelled TV channel.
How to apply
1. The eligible applicant will apply for issue/renewal of Secretariat pass on the designated web portal online with scanned copies of required documents to be uploaded thereupon.
2. The accredited journalists while applying on the portal will upload a scanned copy of the valid accreditation card.
3. The Editors can apply with copies of the identity card issued by the I&PR department along with proof of present residential address.
4. Representatives of national and regional news agencies authorised for the purpose while applying will give the letters of authority issued by respective authorities along with proof of present address.
5. The reporters/correspondents/journalists/cameramen of the empanelled dailies/periodicals and TV channels while applying need to file the following testimonials.
— Letter of authority from respective editors
— Press ID Card
— Proof of present address.
The Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government disallowed scribes from entering the premises of Lok Seva Bhavan during the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, but continued to withhold permission even after normalcy was restored. The ban was partially lifted for accredited journalists two years later. However, most journalists from TV news channels and newspapers who did not have accreditation could not enter the Secretariat.
