The government would ensure the safety of the journalists so that they don’t face any harassment while seeking information, State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat said on Monday.

The state minister was speaking at a function on the occasion of cheque distribution of Bangladesh Journalist Welfare Trust (BJWT) at Tatya Bhaban in the city’s circuit house road in the afternoon.

“We want to ensure that no journalist anywhere in the country faces any kind of harassment or trouble while performing their professional duties,” he said.

"It is the responsibility of the government to ensure journalists' safety and welfare. The media will do their job with complete independence. We want to build such a society where journalists would be allowed to criticize authorities and the government" he added.

“The government of Bangabandhu’s daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina thinks nothing beyond this,” he said.

About the imprisonment of a journalist outside Dhaka, the state minister said, he inquired about the incident and the Information Commission immediately took the incident into its cognizance.

He also urged the media owners to pay the arrears of the 9th wage board as soon as possible.

At the event, he distributed the grant among 42 journalists of Dhaka district in the second phase of the fiscal year 2023-2024.

The government allocated a total of Taka 2.03 crore for the disbursement of BJWT grant among 263 journalists and their families across the country in the second phase.

He said the financial assistance is being given to the journalists as part of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s endeavor to ensure safety and security of the journalists. She took the initiatives for all journalists irrespective of their political views and ideologies considering their necessity.

BJWT Trustee Board members Press Institute Bangladesh (PIB) Director General Zafar Wazed, BFUJ- Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists President as well as Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) acting Chief News Editor Omar Faruque, Managing Editor of Dainik Sangbad Kashem Humayun and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) President Sohel Haider Chowdhury and DUJ General Secretary Akhter Hossain spoke on the occasion with BJWT Managing Director Shubash Chanda (Badol) in the chair.