The Naresh Chandra Committee on National Security, a 14-member task force set up by the government to take forward national security reforms, suggests: “The requirement of instant reports in situations like communal clashes, bomb blasts, terror attacks, Left-wing extremism or sudden developments in the neighbourhood cannot be over-emphasised and requires highly trained persons with requisite seniority to handle the same. The officers should have both access to timely and accurate information which they can provide to the media, and also (be able) to handle media queries in a way that no controversies arise where public and national interests are concerned,” it says.
The committee observes, “The government needs to overhaul the entire system of public dissemination of information... Enough may be to comment here that the revamp may start from the information service officers for adjusting to the fast-changing media scene in the country and in the entire world.” The committee also suggests mid-career training capsules for these officers “in sophisticated private media houses.”