Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
criticised politicians in his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for not being
active on social media, national media reported.
Addressing a gathering of the Union Council of Ministers on 2 May, Modi
urged them to aim for at least 100,000 followers on Facebook and
Twitter.
The prime minister lectured his 280
parliamentarians on the need for them to use social media to spread the
word about government achievements. He has now appointed power minister
Piyush Goyal, petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan and minister of
state Jitendra Singh to help the BJP politicians use Facebook and
Twitter.
The prime minister asked the
lawmakers: "How actively have you used social sites to spread the
government policies? 3.2 crore people have got loans under Mudra bank
scheme, 3.18 lakh homes will soon get free LPG, rural electrification is
reaching lakhs of homes. Have you all gone to the public about these
achievements?" national broadcaster NDTV reported.
The meeting had been called to review the
workings of key economic ministries, such as the commerce, finance,
telecom and IT departments. Modi urged ministers to create catchy logos
for their departments, as well as to prepare e-books that list their
achievements to help people understand measures being taken by the
government.
Modi has become well-known worldwide for his
use of social media, particularly during his election campaign in 2014,
when the Financial Times dubbed him "India's first social media prime
minister". In March the Indian leader was listed among TIME magazine's
30 most influential people on the internet for the second year in a row,
with 18 million Twitter followers and more than 32 million Facebook
fans.
TIME magazine wrote
about his use of social media: "The leader of the world's largest
democracy is also an internet star. Unlike some of his contemporaries,
he often uses social media to break news and conduct diplomacy."
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