South Asian Newspapers

An Open Access collection sponsored by the Center for Research Libraries

South Asia is home to approximately a quarter of the world’s population as well as the world’s largest populations of Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs. The region is marked by hundreds of years of colonial rule, with the British as the dominant force from the mid-18th century on. British rule would cast a pall far beyond the end of the colonial era, with Britain’s partitioning of the subcontinent along sectarian lines into the Republic of India and Pakistan (East and West). The new boundaries sparked mass displacement and decades of conflict, in some cases leading to the birth of new nations, such as the secession of East Pakistan (modern day Bangladesh), while others stoked disputes that still smolder on today, such as the Kashmir conflict.

The South Asian Newspapers collection chronicles these conflicts as well as contemporary perspectives on independence movements, early statehood, and the extensive economic and social growth taking place in the region during this time. The collection covers several countries, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan), India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, and features multiple languages such as Bengali, Dari, English, Nepali, and more. With reportage dating as far back as the 1850s, the South Asian Newspapers collection provides a wealth of coverage and perspectives on major regional and global events of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Open access to the South Asian Newspapers collection is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Center for Research Libraries and its member institutions.

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Current Titles

Current titles in the South Asian Newspapers collection include:

  • Daily Business Post, Pakistan, English, 1963-1973
  • Dainika basumatī (দৈনিক বসুতী), India, Bengali, 1962-1992
  • Dnyānaprakāśa (ज्ञानप्रकाश : the daily Dnyan Prakash), India, Marathi and English, 1914-1938
  • Eastern Examiner, Bangladesh, English, 1962-1973
  • Kerala chronicle, India, English, 1962-1963
  • Lahore Chronicle, Pakistan, English, 1850-1953
  • Malabar Herald, India, English 1962-1972
  • Pakistan Observer, Bangladesh, English, 1962-1971

Access the collection or download the title list below to view the complete list of titles in the South Asian Newspapers collection.

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About the GPA CRL Alliance

East View and the Center for Research Libraries have created the GPA CRL Alliance to steer the development of a series of thematically designed databases for East View’s Global Press Archive program to meet the specific needs and priorities of CRL members. Launched in 2019, the charter phase of the GPA CRL Alliance resulted in the creation of nine collections, encompassing hundreds of newspaper titles and totaling over 4.5 million pages, of which 3 million pages are fully Open Access.

The first of these collections – Late Qing and Republican-Era Chinese Newspapers, Middle Eastern and North African Newspapers, Independent and Revolutionary Mexican Newspapers, Imperial Russian Newspapers, Southeast Asian Newspapers, and South Asian Newspapers – are all Open Access collections and are the result of close collaboration between East View and CRL, with CRL advisors selecting and curating the content, and CRL members funding the collections to facilitate global Open Access.

Encouraged by the positive results of Phase 1, a second phase of the GPA CRL Alliance is now underway. The continuation of this highly successful academic-commercial partnership between CRL and East View will serve our shared values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and continue to extend access to global newspaper collections to the widest possible audience. Fundraising for Phase 2 has ended but CRL members are still encouraged to contribute to the program.

Click the link below to learn more about the GPA CRL Alliance, available collections, and plans for the next phase of the Alliance.

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