The Information and Public Relations Department plays a key role in taking the government's programs to the people.
The officers in the department have strong connections with the media, and they build relationships with journalists.
From the Commissioner of the Information and Public Relations Department (I&PR) to the Assistant PRO at the bottom, all should have direct contact with journalists.
Unfortunately, in the last four years, the department has moved away from PR work, mostly because of the man who is sitting at the top.
T Vijayakumar Reddy, an Indian Information Service (IIS) officer, is now heading the department, but he has zero knowledge about it.
Vijayakumar Reddy had been with the Press Information Bureau (PIB) throughout his service, and it was his first stint with the I&PR.
The job chart for the PIB and the I&PR is different, and PIB officers have no direct contact with journalists, unlike I&PR officers.
In PR work, I&PR officials are fully aware of every journalist and maintain close relations with them.
On the other hand, PIB officers miss this direct relationship with media personnel as their interaction is limited.
As head of the I&PR Department, Vijayakumar Reddy failed to build relations with media personnel and continues to be the same PIB officer he was.
He is not aware of the problems of journalists, nor is he ready to learn, but he continues to disassociate with them.
There has not been a single occasion when the Commissioner of I&PR held an interactive session with journalists in the last four years.
He is discharging only the clerical work of releasing advertisements and press notes to the media, rather than building relationships with media personnel.
His PIB background has further distanced journalists, particularly in issuing accreditation cards for them.
His poor knowledge about accreditation cards made the I&PR move away from journalists, with most of them cursing Jagan Mohan Reddy for having a non-PR man as the head of the I&PR Department.
While a section of the media is already against the government, Vijayakumar Reddy, with his zero knowledge in PR work, has made several journalists turn against the government.
It is high time that Jagan Mohan Reddy appoint a PR man to the department rather than continuing with this PIB man and lose the sympathy of journalists.
