Print media growing at 10%: I and B Secretary

There was no danger to the print media in the country despite the advent of the electronic media as even after watching television channels, viewers still find it necessary to read newspapers, Information and Broadcasting Secretary, Uday Verma said today.

"For the past few years, the print media in India has been growing at an annual rate of 10%," the I and B secretary told a Meet-the-press programme.

This growth could be because the electronic media did not fully satisfy the needs of those who watch it and even after watching television channels, viewers still find it necessary to read newspapers, he said.

The I and B secretary, however, said that this trend was against what was happening in some Western countries where the print media had registered negative growth rate. Verma said that there were 800 television channels in the country and 200 more were in the pipeline.