M Venkaiah Naidu tells official to look into newspaper wage board issue

Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday asked the ministry's Secretary to look into the issues raised by the newspaper industry with regard to implementation of latest wage board recommendations and proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST).

A statement issued by the Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Minister said that he has taken note of the concerns expressed by the newspaper industry reported in the media.

"If required, necessary consultations with the stakeholder ministries will also be initiated to address the issues," the statement said.

Naidu also said that he will meet the representatives of the industry for detailed discussions.

An editorial in 'The Times of India' on Thursday called for review of the wage board and removal of non-journalist staff from its ambit.

It also said that the new GST regime must ensure zero rating of newspapers, so as to fulfil its guiding principle that tax rates will be kept the same as or lower than the current levels of duty.