Sunday, November 1

Information and Public Relations Dept must strengthen timely news dissemination, promote Manipuri language: Officials

Imphal, Nov 2 (IANS) Timely dissemination of authentic information and the promotion of the Manipuri language through government communication are essential to strengthening the role of the Directorate of Information and Public Relations (DIPR), Oinam Sunil Singh, Advisor (Media) to the Chief Minister, said while stressing the need to enhance the Directorate’s professional capabilities.

The 78th Information and Public Relations Day, 2026, was celebrated on Sunday at the Auditorium of the Directorate of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) at Nityaipat Chuthek in Imphal.

Speaking as the Chief Guest, Oinam Sunil Singh highlighted the importance of effective information dissemination and stressed the need to improve the speed of news delivery by the Directorate.

He said that timely dissemination of news would enable the press media to promptly access government information and provide it with wider coverage, including prominence in headlines.

Singh emphasised the need to strengthen DIPR’s news dissemination in Manipuri, in addition to its routine publicity and communication activities in English.

Recalling that the Directorate had earlier regularly disseminated news in Manipuri, he said the language (Meiteilon) served as a common medium of communication connecting the 36 communities of Manipur.

He stressed that the Directorate should take initiatives to popularise Manipuri through its news dissemination activities and appealed to DIPR officials to deliberate on the matter and take necessary steps in this direction.

He also urged the officials to formulate a policy for digital media and introduce a system for registering digital media organisations under the Directorate to ensure better regulation and recognition of the rapidly growing digital media sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Neeta Arambam, Secretary (IPR), highlighted that the department has two major responsibilities — information and public relations.

She said its primary responsibility was to ensure that authentic government information reached citizens quickly, accurately and effectively, while maintaining cordial and effective public relations.

She added that in the present digital age, information, whether genuine or fake, could travel across the world within seconds.

In this context, she emphasised the importance of communicating truthfully, accurately and responsibly, particularly through the newly launched website of the department.

She also highlighted the history of the Directorate, saying that the department was established in 1949 and upgraded to the status of a Directorate in 1974.

In 1975, its activities were further expanded to different district headquarters.

–IANS

sc/khz