Sudharma
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Editor | K.S.Jayalakshmi |
| Founded | 15 July 1970 |
| Language | Sanskrit |
| Headquarters | Mysore, Karnataka |
| Circulation | 5,000 |
| Website | sudharmasanskritdaily |
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Sudharma (Script error: The function "langx" does not exist.) is the daily newspaper printed in Sanskrit in India.[1] The paper is published from the city of Mysore in the Indian state of Karnataka.[2] Established in 1970, the paper is mainly distributed via mail and website (e-paper),[3] a method that its founder resorted to when news vendors refused to stock his paper.
History
Sanskrit scholar Kalale Nadadur Varadaraja Iyengar launched the paper intending to propagate the language. He was also a publisher of Sanskrit books, and the Sanskrit movable types that were sometimes lying idle with him were another motivation for starting the newspaper.[1][clarification needed] When discussing his publishing venture in public he was met with scorn from critics, who predicted the newspaper's failure.[4] Many critics believed that the Sanskrit language had an insufficient vocabulary to cover contemporary day-to-day activities and developments.[4] He was, however, supported in his venture by Agaram Rangaiah, who was an editor of a Kannada newspaper, and also by P. Nagachar, who was a former Joint Director of Information. Ignoring the skeptics, Varadaraja Iyengar published the first issue of Sudharma on July 14, 1970, from a location called 'Ganapathi Totti' in Maharaja's Sanskrit College, priced at a modest two paisa. It was also running in the hard time of the emergency.[3] was also instrumental in starting a Sanskrit news bulletin on All India Radio by convincing I. K. Gujral, the then Minister of Information and Broadcasting in the Government of India. Varadaraja Iyengar died in 1990. The paper is published out of a press in the Ramachandra Agrahara locality of Mysore.
Circulation
The majority of subscribers are Sanskrit scholars and students.[citation needed] The paper has a daily circulation of about 3,500 copies, with an annual subscription fee of ₹600 ($8.09) for ordinary post and ₹1,200 ($16.18) for registered post.[5] In addition to domestic circulation via post to academic institutions, public libraries, and to readers throughout India, the paper is also subscribed to by readers in countries like Japan and the United States of America at an annual overseas subscription fee of $20.[6]
ePaper and subscription
Sudharma was the first Sanskrit daily e-paper in the world. Additionally, its print edition features a Sanskrit crossword puzzle and similar novelties.[7]
Current scenario
Despite the lackluster financial performance of Sudharma, Sampath Kumar comtinued publishing the newspaper, citing his passion for journalism and the Sanskrit language.[citation needed] He has had to struggle to keep the publication afloat.[8] The paper has also helped its readers to learn and improve their knowledge of the language.[4] This newspaper is available online as well.[9]
The editor Sri K. V. Sampath Kumar and his wife Smt. Jayalakshmi KS was selected for the prestigious Padma Shri award for their contribution to journalism (under the category of Literature and Education) by the Government of India in 2020.[10]
Sampath died at the age of 64 on 30 June 2021 following a heart attack.[11][12] Now, his wife Jayalakshmi manages the publishing of the newspaper.[3]
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Muralidhara Khajane (2007-07-21). "Keeping Sanskrit alive". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 2008-06-03. Retrieved 2007-08-16. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Language and love: The story of India's oldest surviving Sanskrit newspaper". 2017-11-11.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "'Sudharma': India's only Sanskrit newspaper completes 55 years of printing; publishes only inspiring news, read worldwide from the USA to Japan". The Times of India. 25 August 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Sanskrit daily celebrates 42nd anniversary", Online Edition of DnaIndia.com, 2007-07-15
- ↑ "Sudharma subscription cost". Sudharma.
- ↑ "Subscription instructions". Sudharma official website. Sudharma. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ↑ "Sudharma - the world's oldest surviving Sanskrit daily newspaper". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ↑ Sharath S. Srivatsa (2006-07-03). "Fighting against odds to keep the daily afloat". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2007-08-16. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Sudharma The only Sanskrit newspaper".
- ↑ Shrinivasa M. (January 25, 2020). "Editors of Mysuru-based Sanskrit daily selected for Padma Shri". The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ↑ "Mysuru: Sanskrit daily editor Sampath Kumar dies | Mysuru News - Times of India". The Times of India. TNN. 1 Jul 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
- ↑ "Mysuru: Editor of world's only Sanskrit newspaper no more". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
