KATHMANDU: The Mass Media Advisory Committee formed by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology began working by holding its first meeting today in the presence of Minister for Communications and Information Technology Rekha Sharma.

Addressing the meeting, Minister Sharma, also a government spokesperson, said that the committee has been formed as there are many laws to be made in the communication sector in accordance with the spirit of the constitution.

Furthermore, since many laws are yet to be changed in the field of communication and information technology the government has taken this matter with priority.

Stating that the government has high expectations from the committee, she expressed confidence that it will provide the necessary suggestions to improve the mass media sector.

She also made it clear that it was the priority of the present government to reform laws to address the changed system as well as the national and international context.

Minister Sharma said that the government was ready to pass some bills related to the communications sector in the current session of Parliament.

On the occasion, the coordinator of the committee Dr Suresh Acharya expressed his commitment to fulfilling the responsibilities of the committee and shared that the final report will be prepared after preparing the preliminary draft and discussing it with the stakeholders.

It may be noted that the government formed the committee to collect feedback and suggestions on policies, laws, and regulations for the overall improvement of the mass media sector.

The members of the committee led by the former president of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), Dr. Chalise includes current FNJ president Bipul Pokhrel, former presidents, Gobind Acharya and Dr. Mahendra Bista, and senior journalist Babita Basnet.