One hundred and fifty years is a long time. Very few survive that long. The Pioneer happens to be one of them, very much alive and kicking and shaping the opinion of the nation as usual.
Started by Sir George Allen in Allahabad way back in 1865, it was the first British-owned and British-edited newspaper in northern India. News was then mainly the record of the letter writers, gossip or cuttings from belatedly received ‘home newspapers’, from the UK. But there was this advantage to set against the paucity of ‘live’ news. The writers and readers of special articles could indulge their taste for fine writing, a reputation that The Pioneer has consistently enjoyed through the ages under successive editors.
In 1872, the editorship passed to AP Sinnett, who had already been editing a newspaper in Hong Kong and had established his reputation as a vigorous writer. Journalistic and literary talent continued to be attracted to The Pioneer. The foremost among them was Rudyard Kipling. Much of his best work was produced while he was in The Pioneer. In the back files of The Pioneer lie buried the verses, sketches and stories by Kipling that have not been unearthed and republished. Also, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill served as its war correspondent. In 1938, George Orwell was all set to become the editor of The Pioneer, but his failing health prevented him from taking up the assignment.
Incidentally, as former President S Radhakrishnan, who inaugurated our centenary celebrations in 1964 with the then Prime Minister lal Bahadur Shastri, said in his inspiring address: “No other paper could claim to be associated with two Nobel laureates — one was Rudyard Kipling, the other was Sir Winston Churchill who served the paper in the late 1890s as its War Correspondent during the Tirah campaign of the North-West Frontier of India.”
Centenary Celebrations
Celebrities from all over the world participated in the celebrations held on the extensive grounds of The Pioneer building in lucknow. In the words of lal Bahadur Shastri, it was “a happy day for The Pioneer which has attained one hundred years of age today”. Many distinguished personalities gathered in lucknow for the weekend of November 20, 1964, to join in the celebrations and pay tribute to The Pioneer on the occasion of the centenary of the oldest newspaper in north India. lucknow city, and especially the grounds and building of the newspaper, were gay with welcoming arches, shamianas and coloured lights to greet the visitors.
Those attending the celebrations included President S Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister lal Bahadur Shastri, the then British High Commissioner, lord Thomson of Fleet, whose UK chain of newspapers was the largest in the world and who represented the Commonwealth Press Union, Sir Timothy Bligh, the Thomson Organisation’s Director of Overseas Development, the Minister Counsellor of the US Embassy Joseph N Greene, Uttar Pradesh Governor Biswanath Das, State Chief Minister Sucheta Kripalani, Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court MC Desai, lucknow University Vice-Chancellor AN Rao, economist Radha Kamal Mukerjee, among others.
President Radhakrishnan referred to the long list of distinguished Editors, English and Indian, who had served The Pioneer. The President stated that the tradition of the paper was worth emulation. The BBC broadcast a special half-hour feature programme to commemorate the centenary. The broadcast traced the history of newspapers in India and discussed the contribution of Britain to the Indian Press.
Maitland Park, Sir George Chesney, Clive Ranigan, George Woolacott, Edwing Howard, FW Wilson and Desmond Young were some of the distinguished editors who are still remembered in India as outstanding craftsmen of their trade. Young is also accredited with the planning a new building to house The Pioneer in lucknow. The foundation stone was laid by the then Viceroy of India, the Marquis of linlithgow, on December 16, 1936.
The first Governor of Uttar Pradesh after Independence, Sarojini Naidu, a great national poet and Mahatma Gandhi’s able lieutenant, favoured The Pioneer with this message on April 22, 1948: “Apart from the technical merits of production and layout, there is a sense of balance and dignity and also an independence of views which though they may not always coincide with mine are well worth considering. I value very greatly your complete freedom from communal bias and a sense of perspective during times of crises.”
Good and Bad times
The Pioneer, like many long-lived institutions, has had its share of good and bad times. The war years had precluded any possibility of revamping its antiquated and worn out press by imports. Apart from import restrictions, the stumbling block was financial constraint, for the new proprietors could not raise enough money or invest their own to renovate the outfit.
Despite its financial constraints and other limitations, The Pioneer was rated, both at home and abroad, as an outstanding newspaper with a proud tradition. It may interest the readers to learn that way back in 1951, The Pioneer was selected as one of the three leading papers in India to represent the World Press in a Tour of the United States Government.
International recognition came when the Population Action Council, Washington, selected the newspaper for the coveted award for media excellence as the best developing world daily in fostering support to solve the world population crisis through demonstrated commitment to shared ideas, knowledge, and experience towards the ultimate objective of reducing population growth and creating a better life for all the “World People”.
The Pioneer, which began as a pro-British newspaper, saw its Indianisation in the 1930s when SN Ghosh took over. It became a part of India’s freedom struggle, shaping the country’s opinion on issues of national importance. With the passage of time, it shifted bases from Allahabad to lucknow and finally to Delhi, but it continued to make its mark.
Today The Pioneer, under Chandan Mitra, comes out from as many as eight cities and is one of the few mainstream English language publications to articulate the Right-wing perspective, thus providing ‘the other view’ as it were in the dominant left and left-of-centre literary culture in the country.
As we celebrate the 150th anniversary of The Pioneer, we bring you some of the little-known stories of the 10 pioneers who have made a difference in the country since the emergence of this newspaper. Also, we’ll talk about the eventful journey of The Pioneer. Hope you like this special edition.