The Statesman

The Statesman is one of India's oldest English newspapers. It was founded in Kolkata in 1875 and is directly descended from The Friend of India (founded 1818). The Englishman (founded 1821) was merged with The Statesman in 1934. The Delhi edition of The Statesman began publication in 1931. The Statesman Weekly is a compendium of news and views from the Kolkata and Delhi editions. Printed on airmail paper, it is popular with readers outside India. The Statesman (average weekday circulation approximately 180,000) is a leading English newspaper in West Bengal. The Sunday Statesman has a circulation of 230,000. The Statesman has distinguished itself through objective coverage of events, its value as an honest purveyor of news emphasised at times of crisis such as the Bengal Famine of 1943 and the infamous internal Emergency of the mid-1970s. It is forthright in the expression of its views. Its pursuit of the truth has been relentless and often at considerable cost to itself, as when the government of Indira Gandhi, in gross abuse of power, attempted to suppress its voice and when the government of Rajiv Gandhi interfered with the grant of statutory clearances to its modernisation plans unless the paper changed its editorial stance. The Statesman prevailed, as the truth must prevail, and remains a favourite of readers in Kolkata and other parts of India. The Statesman passed another milestone on 18 June 1998. Readers in North Bengal, Lower Assam, Sikkim and some hills in the North-east are now serviced by an edition printed in Siliguri where The Statesman has its premises, staff and press. It is an affirmation of The Statesman's commitment to Bengal, where it has had its home for over 100 years. The Statesman is a founding member of Asia News Network, a grouping of 15 Asian newspapers that have joined hands to for coverage of Asian events through Asian eyes.