Eyeing on the lack of utility of these offices and wastage of manpower for no reason, Mittal has taken the decision. Five offices of Registrar of Newspapers of India (RNI) have also been closed for the same reason.
Revamping of Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) is also on the cards to filter ‘bogus’ newspapers. On June 10, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry announced a new policy that seeks to make government advertising in newspapers more transparent and equitable.
In its statement, the ministry said that the new policy would streamline the release of government advertisements and ensure different categories of newspapers and periodicals are treated fairly.
DAVP is the government nodal agency for advertising on behalf of various ministries, departments, public sector units and other autonomous organisations which are funded by the government.
As per new policy, DAVP will release ads to newspapers based on their scorecards and medium-sized newspapers scoring less than 45 marks will not qualify.
Under the new policy, a newspaper needs certification by RNI/ABC if its circulation exceeds 45,000 copies per publishing day. For a newspaper with a circulation of up to 45,000 copies, a certificate from a cost or chartered accountant (CA), a statutory auditor certificate or ABC certification is required. Beyond that, an ABC/RNI audit is a must for all publications.