Home / General Knowledge / One-liner Q&A on Newspapers of British India:

One-liner Q&A on Newspapers of British India:

February 19, 2026
Article

Q: Which was the first printed newspaper in India?

A: Hicky’s Bengal Gazette

Q: Who started Hicky’s Bengal Gazette?

A: James Augustus Hicky

Q: Which newspaper was banned in 1782 for criticizing the East India Company?

A: Hicky's Bengal Gazette

Q: Which was the first Bengali newspaper?

A: Samachar Darpan

Q: Which newspaper was edited by John Clark Marshman?

A: Samachar Darpan

Q: Samachar Darpan was published from which place?

A: Serampore

Q: Which was the first Indian-owned English newspaper?

A: Bengal Gazette

Q: Which newspaper was associated with Raja Ram Mohan Roy?

A: Sambad Kaumudi

Q: Which Persian journal did Raja Ram Mohan Roy publish?

A: Mirat‑ul‑Akhbar

Q: Which nationalist newspaper turned English overnight to evade the Vernacular Press Act?

A: Amrita Bazar Patrika

Q: Who founded Amrita Bazar Patrika?

A: Sisir Kumar Ghosh & Motilal Ghosh

Q: Which newspaper was founded in Madras in 1878?

A: The Hindu

Q: Kesari was founded by whom?

A: Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Q: Kesari was published in which language?

A: Marathi

Q: Which English weekly was started by Tilak?

A: The Mahratta

Q: Which journal did Gandhi edit?

A: Young India

Q: Which journal focused on untouchability reforms?

A: Harijan

Q: Which newspaper was started by Annie Besant?

A: New India

Q: 'Bande Mataram' was associated with whom?

A: Aurobindo Ghose

Q: Which revolutionary newspaper operated from Bengal?

A: Jugantar

Q: Which paper was linked to extremist nationalism in Bengal?

A: Sandhya

Q: 'Al-Hilal' was founded by whom?

A: Abul Kalam Azad

Q: 'Al-Hilal' promoted which ideology?

A: Anti-colonial nationalism

Q: Which paper succeeded 'Al-Hilal' after its ban?

A: Al‑Balagh

Q: 'Indian Mirror' was linked to which movement?

A: Brahmo Samaj

Q: Who started the 'Indian Mirror' newspaper?

A: Devendranath Tagore and Manmohan Ghose

Q: Which newspaper was started by Keshav Chandra Sen?

A: The Indian Mirror Newspaper

Q: 'Sudharak' newspaper was founded by whom?

A: Gopal Krishna Gokhale

Q: Which act imposed restrictions on vernacular newspapers?

A: Vernacular Press Act (1878)

Q: Who passed the Vernacular Press Act?

A: Lord Lytton

Q: Which Governor-General repealed the Vernacular Press Act?

A: Lord Ripon

Q: Which paper became famous for nationalist criticism of British rule?

A: Amrita Bazar Patrika

Q: Which was an early Bombay newspaper?

A: Bombay Herald

Q: Who started the 'Bombay Herald?'

A: William Ashburner

Q: The 'Bombay Gazette' was earlier known by what name?

A: Bombay Herald

Q: In which year was the Bombay Herald renamed as the Bombay Gazette?

A: 1791

Q: Which was an early Madras newspaper?

A: Madras Courier

Q: Which newspaper announced the partition of Bengal?

A: Sanjivani

Q: Which paper was known for radical nationalist tone in Maharashtra?

A: Kesari

Q: Which journal spread Home Rule ideas?

A: New India

Q: Which journal advocated Hindu-Muslim unity?

A: Al-Hilal

Q: Which newspaper is linked to the slogan “Swaraj is my birthright”?

A: Kesari

Q: Which vernacular press act is known as the "gagging act?"

A: Vernacular Press Act, 1878

Q: Which nationalist paper faced repeated British prosecutions?

A: The Mahratta

Q: Which newspaper highlighted peasant & labour issues?

A: Harijan

Q: Which paper played a role in Bengal revolutionary activities?

A: Jugantar

Q: Which press law targeted seditious writings?

A: Indian Press Act (1910)

Q: Who was the founder of the press Association 1910?

A: BG Horniman

Q: Who was the Viceroy of India implemented the Indian Press Act 1910?

A: Lord Minto II

Q: Which newspaper is associated with the motto “Freedom of Press”?

A: Hicky’s Bengal Gazette

Q: Which Governor-General promoted press freedom and repealed restrictions?

A: Lord Ripon

Q: Which extremist leader used newspapers as political weapons?

A: Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Q: Which newspaper popularised militant nationalism in Bengal?

A: Bande Mataram

Q: Which newspaper was started by Dadabhai Naoroji?

A: Rast Goftar

Q: Rast Goftar was published in which language?

A: Gujarati

Q: Which paper was linked with Surendranath Banerjee?

A: The Bengalee

Q: Which revolutionary newspaper was associated with Bhupendranath Dutta?

A: Jugantar

Q: Which was the first paper banned by the Vernacular Press Act?

A: Somprakash

Q: Which journal did Gandhi publish from South Africa before returning to India?

A: Indian Opinion

Q: Which act gagged Indian newspapers in 1878?

A: Vernacular Press Act

Q: Newspapers in British India mainly served what role?

A: Spread political awareness & nationalism

 

Here is a clean exam-ready list of the newspapers mentioned above with their year of establishment / first publication:

1. Hicky’s Bengal Gazette – 1780

2. Samachar Darpan – 1818

3. Bengal Gazette (Indian-owned) – 1816

4. Sambad Kaumudi – 1821

5. Mirat-ul-Akhbar – 1822

6. Amrita Bazar Patrika – 1868

7. The Hindu – 1878

8. Kesari – 1881

9. The Mahratta – 1881

10. Jugantar – 1906

11. Bande Mataram – 1906

12. New India – 1914

13. Young India – 1919

14. Harijan – 1933

15. Al-Hilal – 1912

16. Al-Balagh – 1915

17. Indian Mirror – 1861

18. The Bengalee – 1879

19. Indian Opinion – 1903

20. Madras Courier – 1785

21. Bombay Herald – 1789