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Padamsee to evolve cost-effective promotional mix for AP

Syed Amin Jafri in Hyderabad

Well-known advertising professional Alyque Padamsee has offered his services free of cost to the Andhra Pradesh government to evolve a cost-effective promotional mix for its ad campaigns with focus on motivating the people, according to a top government official.

A senior official connected with the government's media affairs has told rediff.com in Hyderabad that "nothing has been concretised. The modalities are to be worked out for involving Alyque Padamsee with the promotional campaigns of the state government".

The official said that Padamsee, during his three-day visit to the state from February 9 to 11, had interacted with Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu, several other ministers in charge of education, technical education and health, as well as officials of various departments. "He is trying to assist the state government on campaigns pertaining to health, family welfare, AIDS awareness, education, women's rights, and promotional aspects such as industries," the official pointed out.

"Padamsee told us that he earmarks one per cent of his income for such social awareness activities. He volunteered to offer his services for evolving a cost-effective promotional mix, covering the electronic media, print media etc. He had screened 20 to 25 ad films of 30 seconds duration and we were quite impressed. He also witnessed some video cassettes prepared by our government. We look forward to a fruitful relationship with him," the official said.

The ad guru offered tips on motivating people for campaigns on various aspects such as clean and green state and civic awareness. "Specific programmes such as Janma Bhoomi have not been discussed. We need to have further interaction with him on working out the motivational exercises with the least expense," the senior official said. Padamsee promised to visit the state at least once a month to interact with officials.

The Andhra Pradesh government has an annual advertising budget of one billion rupees, out of which almost Rs 650 million is earmarked for "classified ads" such as the tender notices etc. Of the remaining 350 million rupees, approximately Rs 250 million is spent on promotional ads in the electronic, print and other media for campaigns on Janma Bhoomi, Clean and Green, various self-help groups and the 'Dial-your-CM' programmes.

The state government presently has a string of advisors on various aspects. Rajya Sabha member and Jnanpith award-winner C Narayana Reddy is the cultural advisor for the government. Renowned film director K Raghavendra Rao is the electronic media advisor. Similarly, former VSNL chairman and managing director T Hanuman Choudhary is the information technology advisor to the state government.

However, this is the first time that an advertising personality has been roped in by the state government.

In the late 1970s, A R Baji, a former information commissioner from Maharashtra, was appointed by the M Channa Reddy government as information advisor.

Another prominent information official Binod Rao was information advisor during T Anjaiah's tenure as chief minister in the early 1980s. In the late 1980s, the then chief minister N T Rama Rao had brought in an Indian postal service official Saidulu as information commissioner.

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