By IANS,
New Delhi : The Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), the government-run institution of journalism and media studies, will be upgraded into an international media university to fulfill the growing demands of the booming sector, Information and Broadcasting Minister P.R. Dasmunsi said Thursday.
“I am very happy to announce that we have decided to upgrade the IIMC as an international media university. The Planning Commission has already approved the proposal and my ministry is working to make this Institute into a world-class media education, training and research university,” Dasmunsi said at the 41st annual convocation of the institute.
An act of parliament will soon be passed to change the status of IIMC. “This will fulfill the growing demand of the media industry to provide more trained and qualified professionals,” the minister said.
The IIMC, set up by the government, offers post-graduate diploma course in Hindi journalism, post-graduate course in journalism in English, post-graduate diploma in advertising and public relations, post-graduate diploma course in radio and TV journalism and diploma course in development journalism.
Dasmunsi quoted a recent industry report stating that in the last four years, the Indian media and entertainment industry has recorded a cumulative growth of 19 percent on an overall basis.
“The report also predicts the industry is estimated to grow at compound annual growth rate of 18 percent in the next five years,” he said.