Spent Nearly Rs 1,700 Crore On Ads In Last Three Years: Govt Tells Parliament

Union Minister Anurag Thakur said the amount committed for advertisements by the government through print and electronic media during the period 2018-19 to 2020-21 is Rs 1,698.98 crore.

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur. (Image: ANI)

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has told the Parliament that it spent nearly Rs 1,700 crore on advertisements in print and electronic media in the last three years.

Union Minister Anurag Thakur said the amount committed for advertisements by the government through print and electronic media during the period 2018-19 to 2020-21 is Rs 1,698.98 crore.

“The primary objective of government advertising is to create awareness of government policies and schemes among the intended beneficiaries, including the population living in far-flung and remote areas, through print, electronic and outdoor media,” ANI quoted Thakur as saying.

The Information and Broadcasting Minister said this in a written response earlier on Tuesday while responding to a query raised in the Lok Sabha by All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) MP Badruddin Ajmal.

The Central government, as per the data shared by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, spent a total of Rs 826.5 crore on advertisements in newspapers.

The shared data said Rs 118.59 crore was spent on ads in 6,085 newspapers in 2020-21, Rs 200 crore in 5,365 newspapers in 2019-20 and Rs 507.9 crore was spent on ads in 6,119 newspapers in 2018-19.

The ministry added that the ruling dispensation spent a total of Rs 193.52 crore for advertisements in the electronic media in the last three years.