Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Anurag Thakur told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, 28 July, that the government spent Rs 3,339.49 crore on advertisements in the print and electronic media in the past five years.
In a written reply, Thakur said the government had spent Rs 1,756.48 crore on advertisements in the print media from 2017-18 till 12 July, 2022.
In the same period, the government spent Rs 1,583.01 crore on advertisements in the electronic media, as per PTI.
The minister said, “The expenditure was incurred by the government through the Central Bureau of Communication.”
He added that there was no expenditure incurred by any ministry or department of the government on advertisements in foreign media through the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Ruckus in Parliament
Meanwhile, as the Monsoon Session of the Parliament continues, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs created a ruckus in both the Houses and demanded an apology from Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury who addressed President Droupadi Murmu as 'rashtrapatni' on Wednesday.
However, Chowdhury said that he used the word "by mistake." Both the Houses were adjourned following the ruckus.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)