“During the early period of British rule in India, the administrators tended to look askance at the growth of the printing press in this country. Indians had not sufficiently advanced at this stage to participate effectively in journalism, and the press was in the hands of the compatriots of the rulers. But these people were often extremely critical of the admini- strators. This was not only embarrassing at the moment, but it was feared that it might result in accelerating the growth of political consciousness among Indians, a prospect which many administrators were not prepared to view with equanimity. Fortunately, there were far-sighted statesmen like Elphinstone, who held that the immediate practical advantages of the press as an instrument of popular education far outweighed the remote political risks, and they sought a solution of the difficult problem in the establishment of a controlled press.”

— Anant Priolkar

The Printing Press in India: Its Beginnings and Early Development, Being a Quatercentenary Commemoration Study of the Advent of Printing in India

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Anant Priolkar1

historian 1895–1973

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