The Government of India on Tuesday announced a major revision in advertisement rates for print media, accepting in full the unanimous recommendations of the 9th Rate Structure Committee (RSC).
The new rates, which include a hike of up to 26%, come into immediate effect and also provide higher premiums for colour advertisements and preferential positioning.
The Rate Structure Committee, constituted on 11 November 2021, held extensive consultations with the Indian Newspaper Society (INS), All India Small Newspapers Association (AISNA), Small-Medium-Big Newspapers Society (SMBNS) and representatives of large, medium and small publications. The panel examined rising newsprint costs, imported paper prices, inflation, wages, production expenses and the growing competition from digital platforms.
Announcing the decision in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan said the enhanced rates will help newspapers and periodicals cope with escalating input costs and sustain operations in an increasingly digital-dominated media landscape. “Improved financial health of print media will strengthen local journalism and enable better content creation in public interest,” he added.
In a separate reply, Dr Murugan highlighted the government’s continued commitment to journalist welfare. He informed the House that print media advertisement rates have been increased by up to 26% recently and that 402 journalists or their families have received financial assistance under the Journalist Welfare Scheme (JWS) between 2014–15 and 2024–25.
