New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANS): Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Friday asked government officials to maximise use of social media platforms and disseminate information which is useful for general public.

Addressing a workshop here on 'Effective Use of Social Networking for Government Communication', Rathore said that through social media the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has tried to establish two-way communication with people.

"You cannot hide information in today's world. You have to share the information. The idea is to send the right kind of content that people can engage with," he said.

The Minister said the information generated in social media can in the ultimate be helpful to empower and update people.

Addressing Press Information Bureau (PIB) officials who cater to the government's communication outreach, Rathore said the era of "iron curtain" vis-a-vis information dissemination is now a thing of the past.

"We need to open up. Typically, governments have been with iron curtains all around. But today, time is changing," he said stressing upon the need for changing the mindset.

Rathore maintained that social media has assumed its own importance as matters and views circulated on social media "shape" one's mind and opinion and this often gets reflected in the regular media.

Most central ministers are on Facebook, he said but added that there was still scope for improvement on that score.