Guwahati (Assam), Sept 1 : As casualties among media persons to Covid-19 complications continue to grow in India, Journalists’ Forum Assam (JFA) appeals to every scribe to be cautious and careful in safeguarding themselves along with their families while reporting from the ground.
The forum also urged the Union government in New Delhi to announce a comprehensive insurance policy for the media corona warriors.
Lately, a young television journalist from Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) succumbed to novel corona virus infections. Neelanshu Shukla (30), who was associated with AajTak, tested positive for Covid-19 on Aug 20 and died on Aug 31 in the hospital. Shukla, a bachelor, also worked for NDTV and Republic TV as a Lucknow correspondent.
Earlier, Maharashtra’s veteran journalist Ashok Churi, who edited Marathi weekly PalgharTimes, died at a Palghar based hospital, who later tested positive for Covid-19. Similarly, a young photo journalist from Punjab (Jai Deep), who worked for a Patiala based newspaper, died of corona related ailments.
Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh) based television reporter Madhusudan Reddy and video journalist M Parthasarathy also succumbed to corona complications. Tamil Nadu television reporter Ramanathan and Orissa journalists namely Simanchal Panda, K Ch Ratnam & Priyadarshi Patnaik also lost their battles against the virus.
New Delhi based scribe Tarun Sisodia killed himself undergoing treatment at All India Institute of Medical Sciences. The printer-publisher of AsomiyaKhabar (Rantu Das) died of heart-failure at a Guwahati hospital, who later tested positive for Covid-19. Chennai based news videographer E Velmurugan, Chandigarh based news presenter Davinder Pal Singh, Hyderabad based television scribe Manoj Kumar, Agra based print journalist Pankaj Kulashrestha and Kolkata based photojournalist Ronny Roy earlier died of Covid-19.
“Till date, over one hundred Assam based media persons turned positive for the virus infection,” said a statement issued by JFA president Rupam Barua and secretary Nava Thakuria adding that the worrisome development has not been reported by the concerned news papers, news channels and digital platforms properly except a few infected media persons made personal revelations in the social media.
“Need not to remind that it is the duty and responsibility for newspapers, news channels, digital outlets to report correctly about the corona warriors and also the victims within the media fraternity,” asserted the statement adding that they would definitely continue playing an important role along with the practicing doctors, nurses, sanitation workers and police personnel during the pandemic.
