PM urges party MPs to be tech-savvy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday encouraged BJP MPs to use smartphones to reach out to voters as he foresees a drastic shift towards digital campaigning in the next elections. Since the beginning, Modi has been urging parliamentarians to become tech-savvy so that they can share views and development initiatives through Twitter and Facebook.

The prime minister told party MPs that smartphones and social media can be exploited to establish direct contact with voters. Modi said this at the third informal breakfast interaction with BJP MPs from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand and Odisha. Some nominated MPs were also present.

Through smartphones, MPs should popularise the government’s pro-poor programmes like free LPG connections, rural electrification, housing and Mudra schemes, Modi said. An MP who attended the interaction said the idea was that most people become aware of current events and government schemes through WhatsApp and Twitter, and those who don’t adapt to the new technology of communication will be left behind. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said, “In the ensuing elections, social media and mobile phone will be the biggest interface between communicators”.