You may have heard in school about India’s first newspaper – if you heard about it at all. You may have heard that it was an insolent, ‘scurrilous’ paper that insulted its social betters and printed regular articles on scandal and sex. But what you probably didn’t hear was that it was also a force for public good.
India’s first newspaper, known as Hicky’s Bengal Gazette after its founder James Augustus Hicky, was launched in 1780 at a time of great change in India. The British East India Company, led by Governor-General Warren Hastings, had just won a series of victories and was expanding its power and influence over India, with the goal to conquer all the subcontinent. As a consequence, British colonial cities like Calcutta were growing in size and importance.
Editor and founder James Augustus Hicky was determined to enter this fray to use his newspaper as a place where people could express their ideas. He was also determined to make it a place where people could help society.
In 1780, Calcutta was hit by one of the greatest fires in the city’s history. Every house, from Bow Bazar in the city’s north to Colinga in the east, went up in flames. Thousands were left homeless, with no food, water, or clothes. Hicky printed this public address to the leaders of the East India Company asking for help:
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