Odia IIS Officer Sitanshu Kar Takes Charge As DG Of Press Information Bureau

Prior to this assignment, Kar was the Director General of the News Services Division of All India Radio (officially known as Akashvani).

During his illustrious career spanning nearly 35 years, Kar has worked in several key positions in various media units of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

After his early education in Cuttack, Kar completed his graduation from BJB College in Bhubaneswar with Political Science (honours). He then pursued post-graduate degree in Political Science and M Phil in Chinese and Japanese Studies from Delhi University.

After attending the foundation course at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, and orientation course at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), New Delhi, Kar had a brief stint with News Services Division of All India Radio (AIR). He then moved onto Doordarshan News where he spent nearly 17 years and played a stellar role in its growth.

Kar became the first Indian to win the prestigious Visnews Fellowship of London in 1988 after a worldwide competition and travelled length and breadth of Europe and North America to experience the cutting-edge technologies being used in the production of television news by leading broadcasters.

In 2003, Kar joined the PIB and anchored the publicity of several key ministries such as Environment & Forests, Rural Development, Human Resource Development, Science & Technology, Atomic Energy and Space before joining as the Directorate of Public Relations, Ministry of Defence, as the Principal Spokesperson in August 2005.

He was also the longest serving spokesperson of the Ministry of Defence, having shouldered the responsibility for over a decade.