Flood relief fund: ministry employees to donate three-day salaries

All the employees of grade 16 and above of the ministry of information and broadcasting including its allied departments will donate three days' salaries to Prime Minister's Relief Fund for the Flood Victims of Sindh. This was decided in a meeting of I&B chaired by Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, here on Saturday.
The decision will be implemented in all state media corporations including Pakistan Television (PTV), Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC). The federal minister offered her one-month salary for the donation. Dr Firdous apprised members of the meeting about her recent four-day visit in Sindh where she distributed relief goods to the flood-affected people. She emphasised the need to chalk out a comprehensive strategy to engage media for objective coverage of the disaster.
The government and private sector should make joint effort for relief and rehabilitation of the flood victims and urged media to play pivotal role for mobilising the nation to step forward to help their brothers and sisters in this hour of trial. The minister directed Press Information Department's Crisis Communication Cell to take immediate action to provide round the clock information to the media and public at large in close co-ordination with media communication cell of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Sindh as well as National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). It was informed the minister will conduct briefing this week with the special objective to sensitise media about the proper coverage of the disaster.
Dr Firdous also directed External Publicity Wing of the ministry to ask its press officers posted in Pakistani missions abroad to sensitise international media and mobilise Pakistani expatriates for the fundraising. The meeting was attended by Federal Secretary for Information and Broadcasting, Taimoor Azmat Usman and heads of all departments and officials.