Odisha government urged to support journalists

Bhubaneswar(20/09/2025): Journalists in Odisha are often neglected and overlooked.

One such example is Tapas Kumar Das, a well-known journalist from Bhubaneswar.

He has exhausted all his family’s savings while undergoing treatment for a liver-related disease.

With two children and his wife, he continues to battle the illness.

For over two decades, Tapas has worked in journalism, serving the public interest and social welfare.

Today, he has become helpless. Lingaraj Sahoo, convenor of the Sambadika Milita Mancha (Journalists’ United Forum), has appealed to the state government’s Health Department, Information & Public Relations Department, and philanthropists to come forward and help.

While various associations exist in the state for journalists’ welfare, the Journalists’ United Forum was formed six years ago to unite journalists for their common interests. Hundreds of journalists from Bhubaneswar joined the forum and launched campaigns for the implementation of a Journalist Protection Act.

Without appointing any president or secretary, the forum was formed to bind all journalists together.

During this period, its members met more than 12 ministers and 50 legislators to press their demands. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the forum successfully campaigned for separate vaccination camps for journalists.

Similarly, two months before the last general election, the forum met representatives of various political parties in New Delhi and urged them to include issues like the Journalist Protection Act and other issues in their election manifestos.

This demand, raised at an all-India level for the first time, earned appreciation for Lingaraj Sahoo, the convenor of the forum.

As a result, the BJP included solutions for journalists’ issues in its central election manifesto. Now, Lingaraj Sahoo has appealed to the government to help the ailing journalist Tapas Das.

It is noteworthy that the capital city has more than 80 daily newspapers in Odia, English and other languages, besides numerous television, digital media and web channels operating here.

Journalists are facing increasing challenges, and it is time to use long experience for their benefit. Journalists in Bhubaneswar have expressed that time has come to stand with the Journalists’ United Forum to secure journalists’ rights.