Naidu Govt to Spend Big Money on Social Media!

The Andhra Pradesh government led by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is set to spend significant money on promoting government policies and programmes through social media with the help of influencers.

Following a decision taken by the state Cabinet a few days ago, the Naidu government issued a government order on Monday introducing a policy to formally empanel social media influencers to disseminate information about government welfare schemes, development programmes and other initiatives among the public.

Under the policy, influencers with a credible presence on social media platforms will be identified and officially empanelled. The government has directed the Managing Director of APDSCL to take further steps to operationalise the system.

The empanelled influencers will receive official accreditation and may be given opportunities to participate in government events and programmes. They may also be permitted to use drones for specific assignments wherever required, subject to applicable permissions.

The policy envisages coordination with influencers at the district level and seeks to facilitate the dissemination of what the government describes as transparent and authentic information about its programmes.

The policy covers influencers active on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and X. They will be divided into four categories based on the number of followers or subscribers they have.

An influencer must have at least 10,000 followers or subscribers to qualify for empanelment. Eligible influencers will have to apply online to avail themselves of the remuneration offered by the government.

A five-member scrutiny committee will examine the applications and select eligible influencers. Those selected will initially be issued digital and physical identity cards for a period of one year.

Their performance will be reviewed during the first year, following which their empanelment may be extended for another two years based on their performance.

The government also proposes separate payments, depending on the category, for posting or creating graphics, videos and audio content. Payments will also be made for content independently created by influencers, according to the policy.

The proposed remuneration structure is linked to the number of followers. Influencers with more than one lakh followers will be eligible for a maximum remuneration of Rs 15,000 per post. Those with 50,000 to 99,999 followers can receive up to Rs 7,500, those with 25,000 to 49,999 followers can receive up to Rs 5,000, and those with 10,000 to 24,999 followers can receive up to Rs 2,500.

“The maximum remuneration to be paid to an influencer, irrespective of the number of posts made, will be Rs 75,000 per month,” the GO said.

Officials have invited eligible influencers to apply once the application process is opened. The selection will not be based solely on follower numbers. The government will also consider an influencer’s credibility, quality of content and ability to reach and influence the public while deciding on empanelment.

It is not immediately known how many influencers the government will empanel or how many will ultimately be assigned work.

An analyst, however, alleged that the policy could open the door to corruption and nepotism and become a significant burden on the state exchequer.