On December 17, 2025, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued an office order appointing Shri Manish Shiva Zole, Deputy Director (PIB), as the Chief of Media & Communications (CMC) for MeitY. This is in pursuance of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting D.O. No. M-20011/10/2025- Press dated 12.11.2025.
The CMC will act as the Single Point of Contact for all media engagements and information dissemination across various platforms. The CMC will report directly to Secretary (MeitY) and coordinate with AS/JS/GC of MeitY dealing with Information, Education and Communication (IEC) matters. All Divisions of MeitY will route their media plan through the CMC. Expenditure on TA/DA and other working arrangements will be borne by MeitY.
The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) details the roles and duties of the CMC, including conceptualizing, planning, and releasing funds for campaigns; media plan execution; creatives; campaign strategy; drafting press releases; organizing press conferences; media liaison; publishing Op-Eds; fact-checking; media planning for events; conducting press tours; monitoring & feedback; and inter-agency coordination. The CMC will coordinate with CBC for media plan preparation and execution. The CMC will also coordinate with the Ministry's Media Cell, Minister's Office, and Secretary's Office, and collaborate with other I&B media units.
Administratively, the CMC will supervise staff, manage correspondence, and maintain databases. For budget and accounting, the CMC will plan annual budgets for IEC activities and coordinate with the Ministry regarding advertisement & publicity funds. The CMC will have a team from the client Ministry and an office within the Ministry, routing all related files through him. The Ministry will place 40% of Advertisement & Publicity funds with the Ministry of I&B as per the DoE OM No. 7/53/2019-BA dated 30.04.2025.
The document includes a list of recipients of the order, including various officers within MeitY, CEOs of autonomous societies and companies under MeitY, and the DG of NIC/DG STQC Dte. For further information the email address provided is secy.inb@nic.in.
Key Entities Referenced
Chief of Media & Communications (CMC): A single point of contact in each Ministry/Department for media engagement and information dissemination, responsible for coordinating media plans and campaigns, and reporting to the Secretary of the Ministry/Department.
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY): The ministry to which the Chief of Media & Communications (CMC) is appointed in the context of this order, responsible for media engagement and information dissemination.
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting: The ministry that initiated the policy to streamline communication by Press Information Bureau (PIB) officers and establish the Chief of Media & Communications (CMC) role.
Press Information Bureau (PIB): The agency with officers whose role is streamlined and strengthened by the appointment of Chief of Media & Communications (CMC) to improve media engagement and information dissemination.
Standard Operating Procedure (SOP): A document outlining the roles and duties of the Chief of Media & Communications (CMC), covering areas like planning campaigns, media plan execution, creatives, strategy, and media liaison.