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PRESS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS Lok Sabha Secretariat Parliament of India

Guidelines for Accreditation of Media Organizations and their Representatives

Admission of Newspapers

In the case of requests for admission of daily Newspapers to Lok Sabha Press Gallery, the following criteria shall be followed:-

  • There must be a formal request from the Editor-in-Chief accompanied by a recommendation from the Press Information Bureau of the Government of India (or the Directorate of Information and Public Relations of the State concerned in whose jurisdiction the Newspaper has its main office), that the Newspaper may be admitted to the Press Gallery.
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  • The Newspaper must have a minimum daily circulation of 40,000 copies. The latest certificate from the Registrar of Newspaper for India or Audit Bureau of Circulation shall be enclosed with the application in support of the claimed circulation figure.
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  • The Newspapers published only from North-Eastern Region, Jammu & Kashmir and Goa shall have a minimum daily circulation of 15,000 copies for admission to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery. However, in special cases, the Secretariat may accommodate requests for temporary passes from such media organizations even if their circulation is below the stipulated limit.
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  • A multi-edition Newspaper shall be treated as a single entity for the purpose of admission.
  • It would also be mandatory for the Editor-in-Chief of any said single or multi-edition newspaper to enclose necessary proof of a functional Delhi-based Bureau with a Resident Correspondent in Delhi with PIB accreditation.
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  • The applicant Newspaper must also furnish substantial proof of regular parliamentary coverage in support of its request for admission to the Press Gallery.
  • The admission of Newspaper published from Districts and which carry the news on parliamentary activities may be considered case by case.
  • Weeklies, fortnightlies and monthlies shall not be admitted to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery.
  • The Newspaper shall have a minimum of four pages.
  • The Newspaper shall have a minimum uninterrupted standing of three years.
  • All Newspapers of a group/holding company would be considered as a single entity for issuance of passes, irrespective of region and language.
  • Editors of the accredited media organizations will nominate only correspondents, and not other categories of staff, for Press Gallery passes on behalf of their organizations. If found otherwise, the passes issued to the media otherwise persons shall be liable to cancellation.
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  • PIB Card is only for speedier security clearance of media persons, and it does not necessarily entitle an applicant to claim permanent accreditation to the Lok Sabha Gallery.
  • If a Newspaper is not availing its quota-both temporary/permanent-for two consecutive years, its accreditation would stand terminated automatically.
  • Requests which do not carry the mandatory documents along with application may not be placed before the Press Advisory Committee.
  • A Newly accredited organization may be issued only one temporary Press Gallery pass for two years.
  • For permanent accreditation to Lok Sabha Press Gallery, the organization concerned should have experience of covering Lok Sabha proceedings for at least two years before applying for permanent accreditation.

Admission of News Agencies (Wired and Non-Wired)

For admission of News Agencies (Wired and Non-Wired) to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery, the following criteria shall be observed :-

  • Application for admission shall be routed through the Directorate of Information and Public Relations of the State Government in whose jurisdiction the News Agency has its principal office.
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  • The Agency shall be distributing comprehensive parliamentary news on a daily basis for at least five years (prior to the date of application) throughout the year to its subscribers through wire service.
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  • The Agency must have at least 200 subscribers. It shall provide satisfactory evidence to this effect by furnishing a list of subscribers and clippings of the news utilized (especially parliamentary news).
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  • The annual turnover of the Agency would be Rs. 25 lakh.
  • The Agency will have Delhi Bureau with minimum strength of 50 employees on its roll/contract.
  • The Agency will submit a copy of its Income Tax Returns of the last two years.
  • News agencies of a group/holding company would be considered as a single entity for issuance of passes, irrespective of region and language.
  • If a News agency is not availing its quota-both temporary/permanent – for two consecutive years, its accreditation would stand terminated automatically.
  • Requests which do not carry the mandatory documents along with application may not be placed before the Press Advisory Committee.

Guidelines for admission of News portals/Websites into the Lok Sabha Press Gallery

For admission of News Portals/Websites to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery, the following criteria shall be observed:-

  • The Guidelines prescribed for the representatives of print and visual media shall also be applicable in case of editors, correspondents, camerapersons of News Portals/Websites.
  • A News Portal/ Website seeking accreditation to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery shall have sufficient parliamentary content, and shall have at least 50% of its visible content related to news and current affairs originally reported by its own correspondents.
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  • The Publications/ Wire Agencies/ Electronic Media on behalf of which accreditation has already been given will accommodate their online journalists within their existing quota.
  • The News Portals/ Websites should have paid subscribers. However, it should not be insisted on the subscribers right now but preference will be given to the news website having subscribers.
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  • In addition to these guidelines, News Portals/ Websites shall be governed as per the existing rules prescribed for News Agencies in case these guidelines are silent on a specific matter.
  • The News Portals/ Websites should have minimum annual revenue of Rs.50 Lakh from its news portion only.
  • The News Portals/ Websites should be updated regularly and at least eight times daily.
  • The News Portals/ Websites should observe the laws of the land in terms of content, service, promotions, finances and any other aspect of functioning, including parliamentary aspects/decorum, etc.
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  • The Editor and owner of the News Portal/ Website should be an Indian national.
  • The News Portal/ Website should have been functioning for at least three years.
  • The domain name of the Website/News Portal should be registered for at least the next five years from the date of application.
  • The News Portal/ Website should have at least 1,50,000 page views per day of its news portion.
  • The issue of determining the authenticity of the News Portals/ Websites may be decided in consultation with NIC/other Government agencies, in case of any doubt.
  • In the event of a News Portal/ Website found involved in any activity perceived as cyber crime, now or in future, all accreditations given to the representatives of that News Portal/ Website shall be withdrawn immediately.
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  • Only one correspondent from the accredited News Portal/ Website will be given Sessional Pass.
  • All applications are to be referred to the Sub-Committee (SubCommittee consisting of Members from NIC, PAC and Officers from PPR).

Admission to Press Gallery of the Non-Governmental Indian Electronic media telecasting 24 hour News and Current Affairs Programmes

The Non-Governmental Indian Electronic media, which are telecasting 24 hour News and Current Affairs Programmes (inclusive of comprehensive parliamentary coverage for at least three years for temporary accreditation and five years for permanent accreditation prior to the date of application) would be entitled to Press Gallery passes subject to following stipulations:

  • A Statement from the Editor/Head of the Channel giving complete details of the programmes telecast.
  • A Certificate from the Director-General/Principal Information Officer, PIB/Director Public Relations of the State concerned shall be enclosed to the effect that the TV Channel is owned by an Indian and is a 24-hour News Channel.
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  • The Correspondents representing the above mentioned News Channels should have an experience of 5 years in the print or the Electronic media including a minimum of one year’s experience of parliamentary coverage.
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  • The Correspondents should be accredited with the PIB or security- cleared by the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
  • For temporary accreditation to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery, the 24 hours Electronic News Channel should complete three years of its operation on the date of submission of application for temporary accreditation.
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  • Standalone 24 hours Electronic Channels, viz channels which operate as single news channel only, should be considered for only one permanent Lok Sabha Press Gallery Pass along with one temporary pass.
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  • Following quota for camerapersons for coverage in the Parliament House Complex during Sessions would be applied:
    Electronic Channels with 4-5 passes : 3 Units and one rider
    Electronic Channels with 1-3 passes : 2 Units
    Agencies : 2 Units and one rider
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  • Quota for temporary passes for accredited Electronic Channels shall be three in case of channels having 5 permanent Press Gallery passes, two in case of channels having 3-4 and one in case of channels having 1-2 pass. Correspondents applying for temporary pass to cover the proceedings of Lok Sabha shall posses minimum five years journalistic experience on the date of applying for a temporary pass.
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  • Following time limit may be used permanent Lok Sabha Press gallery passes for electronic Channels:
    Temporary accreditation:3 years-one crew/(one correspondent and one PIB accredited cameraman) will be allowed.
    First permanent pass : 5 years (The channel seeking permanent pass should have experience of covering the Parliament for two years on temporary accreditation)
    Subsequent passes : After 5 years of the last permanent pass approved to the channels subject to the existing ceiling of Maximum 5 passes.

Admission of Correspondents

  • As regards the accreditation of a Correspondent, she/he should have at least five years experience in journalism (inclusive of a minimum one year’s experience of covering Rajya Sabha/Lok Sabha) for grant of admission to the Press Gallery. She/he should provide reasonable proof of the above-mentioned experience. She/he may undergo an orientation programme conducted by Bureau of Parliamentary Studies and Training (BPST), which will however be optional. The correspondent should be accredited to the PIB or security-cleared by the Lok Sabha Secretariat. She/he should also submit a copy of appointment letter and salary certificate of the Organisation on whose behalf request has been received for grant of accreditation to the Lok Sabha Press Gallery. She/he should be positioned in Delhi (NCR) with a verifiable Delhi (NCR) address.
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  • All requests for permanent Press Gallery passes must be recommended by the Editor of the organization concerned.
  • All requests for accreditation of Correspondents into the Lok Sabha Press Gallery should enclose a copy of the PIB Card, (if any) of the Correspondent concerned and the details in the Card may be crosschecked with information forwarded by the Editor.
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  • The Editor concerned, nominating journalist for permanent passes, should ensure that RF Tags issued earlier to those journalist, who are no more working for the organisation, are returned to the Lok Sabha Secretariat before any new requests for issue of permanent passes are made.

Temporary Press Gallery Passes to Correspondents

Correspondents of Newspapers/News Agencies accredited to Lok Sabha Press Gallery :-

  • Request should be from the Eidtor-in-Chief/Editor/Authorized signatory on the letterhead of the respective Newspaper/News Agency/Electronic Channels stating the reasons for issue of Temporary Press Gallery pass. The request should be recommended by the two members of the Press Advisory Committee. The journalist should be accredited to the PIB or security cleared by the Lok Sabha Secretariat. Editor-in-Chief of accredited media organizations will ensure that correspondents to be nominated by them hold a minimum experience of five years on the date of making such a nomination for issue of a temporary pass.
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  • Temporary pass may be issued subject to following quota system:
    One temporary pass to those Newspapers/News Agencies having upto two permanent Press Gallery passes;
    Two temporary passes to those Newspapers/Agencies having quota of 3-4 permanent Press Gallery passes;
    Three temporary passes to those Newspapers/News Agencies having a quota of 5 permanent Press Gallery passes;
    Wire Agencies operating from Parliament House may be issued four temporary passes at a time; and
    The journalists of accredited media organisations shall be issued temporary Press Gallery passes for the Session.
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  • All requests for accreditation of Correspondents into the Lok Sabha Press Gallery should enclose a copy of the PIB Card, (if any) of the Correspondent concerned and the details in the Card may be crosschecked with information forwarded by the Editor.
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  • The Editor concerned, nominating journalist for permanent passes, should ensure that RF Tags issued earlier to those journalist, who are no more working for the organisation, are returned to the Lok Sabha Secretariat before any new requests for issue of permanent passes are made.

Freelance journalists

The following criteria shall be strictly followed while granting Sessional Press Gallery passes to freelance journalists :-

  • The applicant shall be accredited to PIB under freelance category.
  • She/he should have an experience of minimum eight years of parliamentary coverage on a permanent pass (Annual Press Gallery passes).
  • She/he may be granted Sessional Press Gallery pass for the entire Session.
  • Proof of Parliamentary coverage will be provided by the freelance journalists concerned at the time of renewing of Sessional pass for the Budget Session each year with renewed PIB freelance card.
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  • Unless otherwise provided, all requests will be brought before the Press Advisory committee for its consideration.
  • The PIB freelance card issued to retired and serving officials of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (PIB/AIR/DD/DAVP, etc.) should not be considered.

Press Gallery Passes to Foreign Correspondents

  • Press Gallery passes to correspondents of foreign media organisations shall be issued on a specific request by Editor concerned and on the recommendation of the Press Information Bureau/Ministry of External Affairs.
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  • All such applicants shall be issued the Press Gallery passes without allotment of seats except those media organizations, which have already been allotted seats in the Gallery.
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