Agartala, Aug 21: Media is the fourth pillar of democracy; it should not be influenced by anybody, said Tripura Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha.

Addressing the 4th State Conference of Tripura Electronics Media Society, he also said that the present state government is media-friendly.

“Media has an important role to play in protecting democracy. The first responsibility of the media is to highlight the truth,” Dr. Saha said.

He also called upon media to come forward to achieve the goal of Neshamukt Tripura.

Minister for Information and Cultural Affairs Sushanta Chowdhury, who also attended the conference, said the present state government took several steps for the welfare of journalists.

He said, “the state government will provide accreditation to more journalists. The budget of ICA department has increased from Rs. 40 to 65 crore. Every media house is being given advertisement.”

Besides, he also said, the state government is also active about the safety of the journalists and more press jackets would be distributed in the days to come.

Secretary of Agartala Press Club Pranab Sarkar, general secretary of Tripura Electronics media Society Sourajit Paul and other dignitaries were present in the programme.

In the next session of the conference, Union Minister of State Pratima Bhowmik and former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb were present.