New Delhi: Rajat Sharma, President, News Broadcasters Association( NBA) in a press statement stated that keeping in mind that news broadcast is an essential service and studios and broadcast offices cannot be shut down, the Board of Directors of NBA, have decided to request all news broadcasters to take the following preventive measures immediately to ensure social distancing to deal with coronavirus:
- Steps should be taken to minimize staff in the broadcast centres and all those employees who can work from home should be requested to work from their residence.
- All reporters and camerapersons, who are out in the field among the public, shall not come to their offices but shall send their news feeds from the field to ingest through proper channels.
- NBA has asked all reporters and camerapersons not to crowd around individuals to collect soundbites. They should maintain a distance of at least four feet from one another while holding their mikes in pursuance of the WHO guidelines.
- NBA has requested Delhi government to earmark a particular parking lot for parking DSNG vans so that these vehicles may not be required to return to office.
- NBA has asked all member news channels to telecast special programmes to create awareness among the public about precautions to be followed to counter the Coronavirus threat.
