K. Rangasai Elected as the State President of the ‘S&MN Association’
K. Rangasai has been unanimously elected as the State President of the ‘Small and Medium Newspapers Association.’ During the state executive meeting held on Sunday, association members elected him as their president. The event, conducted at Hotel Ilapuram in Vijayawada, witnessed a massive participation of association representatives. During the meeting, a new executive committee was also elected. In an enthusiastic atmosphere, members unanimously re-elected K. Rangasai, a veteran journalist known as the "Bhishma of Journalism," as the state president. He has been serving in the field of journalism for nearly 54 years, and his name is widely recognized across the Telugu states. It would not be an exaggeration to say that there are hardly any journalists unfamiliar with him. Despite his reluctance to take on the role again, members unanimously passed a resolution stating that he should continue as the president in light of the challenges faced by small and medium newspapers. Consequently, Rangasai had no choice but to accept the responsibility.
Encouraging the Youth!
Though K. Rangasai was elected as the state president, the rest of the executive body was filled with young journalists. Young journalist Gopinath Rao (Chaitanya Varadhi - Visakhapatnam) was elected as the General Secretary. The Vice Presidents elected were Anil Kumar Reddy (Anantha Bhoomi - Anantapur), Y. Suresh Babu (News Reader - Vijayawada), and K. Parashuram (National News Express - Visakhapatnam).Joint Secretaries elected include P. Srinivasa Rao (Satyagraham - Guntur), G. Raghurama (Vichakshana - Kurnool), and T. Premnath (V. News Daily - Machilipatnam). D.V. Ramana (Gopikrishna - Eluru) was elected as the Treasurer.
Additionally, the following members were elected to the executive body:
S. Gauri Mahesh (Visakha Today Daily - Visakhapatnam)
D. Chand Basha (Jeevanadhar - Nandyal)
M. Munikrishnaiah (Yuvadarsini Daily - Tirupati)
P. Hussain Khan (Rajadhani Varthalu - Amaravati)
B. Prasad (Chaitanya Bhoomi - Visakhapatnam)
M. Jagadeesh (Mahanagar Daily - Vijayawada)
A. Subba Rao (Udayaksharam - Ongole)
Gopal Varma (Rayala Samaj Daily - Vizianagaram)
Delegating Responsibilities to the Youth!
Speaking after being elected as the State President, K. Rangasai announced that he would delegate the association’s responsibilities to the youth while continuing to guide them. He assured that he would strive to resolve the challenges faced by newspapers, just as the association has done in the past.He also addressed allegations against him and the association, stating that baseless accusations were being made without evidence. He emphasized his five decades of service in journalism, during which he never sought favors from anyone and played a crucial role in placing hundreds of journalists in accreditation committees and other bodies.He remarked that some individuals were spreading false claims about complaints against him in the Chief Minister’s Office, but he was unbothered by such accusations. He noted that the truth was well known to the former Commissioner of the Information Department and district collectors, who were not influenced by baseless allegations.He criticized the tendency of some people to form new associations and slander others, calling it an improper practice. He highlighted that it was through their society that small newspapers secured representation in accreditation committees, press academies, SC/ST atrocity committees, and legislative committees.He dismissed claims by some individuals that they were solely responsible for securing advertisements for newspapers, clarifying that their association had done all the necessary work to facilitate this but had never engaged in self-promotion. He asserted that their focus remained on protecting the rights of small and medium newspapers, rather than engaging in petty acts.Regarding newspaper empanelment, Rangasai mentioned that multiple discussions had already taken place with the Director of the Information Department, who had agreed to facilitate the empanelment process. He urged eligible newspapers to submit their applications promptly, assuring them that two society members had been assigned to assist in the process.
- Resolutions Passed by the Association:
- Immediate empanelment of eligible newspapers
- Financial assistance of ₹5 lakh for families of journalists who passed away due to COVID-19
- Restoration of journalist awards
- Allocation of three full-page advertisements per month for empaneled newspapers
- Immediate sanction of housing plots for journalists
- Pension for veteran journalists
- Immediate issuance of health cards for journalists
Senior journalist Y. Suresh Babu presided over the meeting. The session began with the lighting of the lamp, followed by the rendition of the "Maa Telugu Thalli" song. Former General Secretary Srinivas presented a report on the society’s progress and previous initiatives.Later, the election process was conducted transparently under the supervision of election officer K. Subba Rao, with enthusiastic participation from members. The meeting concluded with the singing of the national anthem.
