West Bengal Circular: Media Interaction Rules for Government Employees & AIS Members

Key Points

• Prohibits participation in sponsored/private media programs without prior sanction from the government.
• Bans direct or indirect communication of any document or information with the press without a government order.
• Forbids contributing to editing/managing any publication or writing articles for media without prior government sanction.
• Strictly prohibits any adverse criticism of Central or State government policies through any media.
• Disallows any media interaction that could strain relations between the State, Central, or foreign governments.
• Applies to all West Bengal government employees, employees of autonomous bodies, and All India Service members working in the State.
• Reaffirms compliance with existing conduct rules, including AIS Conduct Rules 1968, WB Service Rules 1980, and WB Government Servants’ Conduct Rules 1959.

Government Order

Government of West Bengal

Personnel & Administrative Reforms Department

Nabanna, 325, Sarat Chatterjee Road,

Howrah – 711102.

No 696-PAR-HR/O/PAR(Estt)/MISC-11/2023 Dated 20th May, 2026

To

1. The Additional Chief Secretary/Principal Secretary/Secretary
Department

2. The Divisional Commissioner, All Divisions

3. The Director General & Inspector General of Police, West Bengal

4. The Commissioner of Police, Kolkata

5. The District Magistrate, All Districts

Sub : Circular No 139-CS dated 19/05/2026 of the Chief Secretary, Government of
West Bengal

Madam/Sir,

I am directed to send Circular No. 139-CS dated 19/05/2026 of the Chief Secretary, Government of West Bengal on dissemination of information by any member of the All India Service, West Bengal Civil Service, West Bengal Police Service and other employees working under the Government of West Bengal for your kind information and wide circulation among all subordinate offices under your control.

Yours faithfully,

Special Secretary

Dated 20th May, 2026

Office of the Chief Secretary

Government of West Bengal

No. 139-CS/2026 Date: 19.05.2026

Circular

Subject: Dissemination of information by any member of the All India Service, West Bengal Civil Service, West Bengal Police Service and other employees working under the Government of West Bengal-reg.

All India Service (AIS) Conduct Rules, 1968, West Bengal Service (Duties, Rights and Obligations of the Government Employees) Rules 1980 and West Bengal Government Servants’ Conduct Rules, 1959 govern the conduct of the members of the All India Services, West Bengal Civil Services and West Bengal Police Service and other State Government employees including the other Police & Jail staff. The AIS Conduct Rules and West Bengal Service (Duties, Rights and Obligations of the Government Employees) Rules 1980 & West Bengal Government Servants’ Conduct Rules, 1959 also define and govern the nature of and limitation on the interaction of any members of the services with any media or press of any kind.

In reference to Rules 6, 7, 13(1) (f)(i)(ii)(iii) and 17 of the All India Services Conduct Rules, 1968, Rules 4(4) (5) and 5(7) of West Bengal Service (Duties, Rights and Obligations of the Government Employees) Rules 1980 and Rules 23, 24, 25 & 33 of The West Bengal Government Servants’ Conduct Rules, 1959, the following points are reiterated for strict compliance by all employees of the Government of West Bengal, employees of Autonomous Bodies, Boards, Corporations, Undertakings and Educational Institutions which are funded wholly or substantially by the State Government and members of the All India Services engaged in connection with affairs of the State:

1. Complete prohibition, except with prior sanction, on the participation or association of any member of the services in any sponsored or privately produced media program or any media program sponsored by the government of India but produced by an outside agency.
2. Complete prohibition without any government order, on any direct or indirect communication of any document or information with the press by the members of the services.
3. Complete prohibition, without prior sanction of the government, on any contribution in editing or managing of any newspaper, periodical or any other publication and on any participation in any radio broadcast or writing of any article or letter for any newspaper or periodical by any member of the services.
4. Complete prohibition on members of the services in indulging in any adverse criticism of any policy or decision of the central or the state government, by any publication, interaction, utterance, publication, broadcast, contribution in any media.
5. Complete prohibition on any publication, interaction, utterance, publication, broadcast, contribution in any media, which can lead to straining of the relations of the state government with the central government or any state government/s or between central government and government of any foreign state/s.

Chief Secretary to the

Government of West Bengal