The government released advertisements to the media for Rs9.6 billion during the course of the previous 1.5 years, the Senate Standing Committee on Information was informed on Wednesday.
Both the information secretary and the director general of Radio Pakistan attended the meeting, and they gave the committee members an update on the organization’s financial difficulties. They emphasized that while pension payments for former Radio Pakistan employees for the months of April to August had been made, the organization was still dealing with the “entire burden of the government’s financial problems.”
Additionally, it was revealed at the conference that negotiations with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) were ongoing with reference to the lease of the land owned by Radio Pakistan, with a projected profit of Rs2 billion. The leasing rate was the main area of disagreement during these discussions; Radio Pakistan pushed for commercial rates while the SBP argued for an industrial rate.
In response, the committee suggested that a public auction be used to lease the land owned by Radio Pakistan. 800 kanals of radio land in Lahore were mentioned as being under consideration for a 20-year lease to the SBP, which is anticipated to immediately bring in Rs 2 billion.
The director general of Radio Pakistan also emphasized attempts to increase the institution’s income, particularly the creation of a broadcast technology park in Islamabad, which had attracted the interest of various businesses.
The Information Secretary informed the committee that, with regard to government advertisements, a sizeable sum of Rs9.6 billion had been paid out to various media outlets over the previous 18 months. Print media received Rs3.5 billion, electronic media Rs4.79 billion, and digital media Rs1.23 billion from this allotment.
