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![]() First Issue of Gorkhapatra | |
Type | Daily newspaper |
---|---|
Format | Broadsheet |
Owner(s) | Gorkhapatra Sansthan, Government of Nepal |
Founder(s) | Dev Shumsher |
Publisher | Gorkhapatra Corporation |
Editor | Narad Gautam |
Founded | 6 May 1901 |
Language | Nepali |
Headquarters | Dharma Path, Kathmandu |
Country | Nepal |
Sister newspapers | The Rising Nepal |
Website | Gorkhapatra Online |
Gorkhapatra (Nepali : गोरखापत्र) is the oldest Nepali language state-owned national daily newspaper of Nepal. [1] It was started as a weekly newspaper in May 1901 and became a daily newspaper in 1961. [2] It is managed by the Gorkhapatra Sansthan. [3] The Rising Nepal is an English-language sister newspaper of Gorkhapatra.
It is the sixth oldest newspaper in continuous publication in South Asia and the oldest in Nepal. [4] Gorkha Bharat Jiban, edited by Motiram Bhatta was published in Varanasi in 1886, is considered the first Nepali language newsmagazine ever published. Gorkhapatra is the second Nepali-language newspaper to be published in Nepal, after Sudha Sagar. [5]
The name of the newspaper is made of up two words— Gorkha and Patra. Gorkha was the erstwhile name of Nepal and was used interchangeably. The erstwhile Kingdom of Nepal was also known as Kingdom of Gorkha and Nepali language was known as Gorkhali language. Patra in Nepali translates to a mail or a document.
Initially, the name of the newspaper was written as गोर्खापत्र (with a Repha character), it was later changed to गोरखापत्र (with a Ra character) on 17 May 1926 (4 Jestha 1983 BS). During the reign of the King Gyanendra, the name was reverted to initial form but was again changed to its second form (गोरखापत्र) on 1 May 2006 (18 Baisakh 2063 BS), after the end of Gyanendra's rule. [6]
It was founded by Dev Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana on 6 May 1901 (24 Baisakh 1958 BS). Dev Shumsher was considered to be one of the more liberal Rana Prime minister. It was initially managed by Pandit Nara Dev Pandey and was published weekly under the supervision of Lt. Col. Dilli Shumsher Thapa. [7] During the early days, the title of editor was not prevalent. Pt. Nara Dev Pandey was referred as Talukdar (manager). Pandey was given a 14–point list of do's and don'ts regarding the matters to be published.
Dev Shumsher was replaced by Chandra Shumsher, as the prime minister of Nepal, just after two months of the establishment of Gorkhpatra. Chandra Shumsher exiled Dev Shumsher to Palpa. Pt. Nara Dev Pandey served as Talukdar for 2 years till September 1903 (Bhadra 1960 BS).
Chandra Shumsher then appointed his son-in-law, Jaya Prithvi Bahadur Singh as the new Talukdar on 7 September 1903 (22 Bhadra 1960 BS). [8] Singh was also provided with all the income earned by the paper from 23 August 1905 (8 Bhadra 1962 BS) to 14 December 1908 (30 Mangsir 1965 BS). [9]
There is a dispute over who the first editor of the newspaper is. Prem Raj became the first person to be referred as an editor of the newspaper. He was appointed as editor on 18 May 1934 (5 Jestha 1991 BS). Bal Krishna Sama was appointed the first Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper on 28 August 1955 (12 Bhadra 2012 BS). He work as the Editor-in-Chief till 9 October 1957 (23 Ashoj 2014 BS). [10]
The official registration of the Nepalese newspapers begun in 1994 BS (1937-1938). Sharada , a monthly literary magazine became the first one to register and Gorkhapatra was registered with registration number two on 14 April 1938 (2 Baisakh 1995 BS). [6]
The newspaper was initially printed by Pashupat Press. The address of the newspaper was printed as Pt. Nara Dev, Motikrishna Sharma, Pashupat Press, Nepal. [11] Pt. Nara Dev was the manager of the Gorkhapatra whereas Motikrishna Sharma was the combined name of Motiram Bhatta and Krishna Dev Pandey. The press was initially started as a bookshop by Bhatta and his maternal uncle Krishna Dev Pandey as Motikrishna Dhirendra Company in 1945 BS (1888-1889). [12] In 1950 BS (1893-1894), Pashupat Press was established alongside the company. The press was located in Thahiti, Kathmandu.
The printing was shifted to a web offset machine in 2038 BS (1981-1982) and to a colour press on 24 June 2002 (10 Ashar 2059 BS). The publication of the news in other Nepalese languages was started on 18 September 2007, under the title Naya Nepal and at present news materials are being published in 38 languages. [13]
Gorkhapatra Corporation was formed on 9 July 1963 (25 Ashar 2020 BS) under the Gorkhapatra Corporation Act 2019. Narayan Prasad Baskota served as the founding director of the corporation. [9]
Important events in the history of the newspaper (Nepali Bikram Sambat dates in brackets alongside description): [16]
Presently, Gorkhapatra is also printed in Kohalpur for western region of Nepal and Biratnagar for eastern region of Nepal, alongside Kathmandu. As of 2021, it had a total circulation of more than 50,000. Gorkhapatra is also accessible through its website. [4]
The paper have been criticised for being government's proponent throughout history. During Rana rule, the newspaper was heavily censored. The newspaper did not published the news of the execution of the four martyrs by the Rana government in 1941. [4] The newspaper also portrayed Chiranjibi Wagle, a person who had held important portfolios as the Minister for Physical Planning and Works and Minister for Information and Communications and Home Minister, as innocent in a corruption case. Wagle was later acquitted for corruption and jailed in 2011. [9] [18]
The online version of the newspaper deleted an article published on 7 December 2021 containing criticism of the Nepali Congress government. The article was retracted due to political pressure from the Prime Minister's Office. [19]
Bhanubhakta Acharya was a Nepali writer, poet, and translator. He is widely regarded as the oldest poet in the Nepali language, for which he was conferred with the title of "Aadikabi": literally, "the first poet".
The Rana dynasty was a Chhetri dynasty that imposed authoritarianism in the Kingdom of Nepal from 1846 until 1951, reducing the Shah monarch to a figurehead and making the Prime Minister and other government positions held by the Ranas hereditary. The Rana dynasty is historically known for their iron-fisted rule in Nepal. This changed after the Revolution of 1951 with the promulgation of a new constitution, when power shifted back to the monarchy of King Tribhuvan.
Nepali literature refers to literature written in the Nepali language. The Nepali language has been the national language of Nepal since 1958.
Sri Maharaja, Dev Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana was the Prime Minister of Nepal for 114 days in 1901. He was also the King of Lamjung and Kaski.
Madhav Prasad Ghimire was a Nepali poet and scholar. He was honoured as the Rashtrakavi by the Government of Nepal in 2003. Some of his acclaimed works include Gauri, Malati Mangale, Shakuntala and Himalwari Himalpari.
Motiram Bhatta was a Nepalese poet, singer, essayist, publisher, literary critic and biographer. He is considered the first biographer and literary critic of Nepali literature and is credited for starting the first private printing press in Nepal in c. 1888. He also introduced the Ghazal style of poetry and singing in Nepal. Bhatta was a polyglot and alongside Nepali, he had studied in Sanskrit, Persian, English and was also proficient in Bengali, Urdu and Nepal Bhasa.
Balkrishna Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana or Bala Krishna Sama was a Nepalese dramatist. For his great contributions to Nepali literature, he was awarded the title Natya Siromani. He is considered as one of the trimurti (trinity) of Nepali literature alongside Laxmi Prasad Devkota and Lekhnath Paudyal. He is often called the Shakespeare of Nepal.
The Rising Nepal is a Nepalese government-owned daily newspaper published by the Gorkhapatra Sansthan. It is a major English-language daily in Nepal. It is a sister publication of the Nepali-language Gorkhapatra, the oldest national daily newspaper of Nepal.
Nir Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana. Field Marshal and retired General of the Nepal Army (NA). Born on 11 Poush, 1970 B.S. (1913) in Jawalakhel Durbar, Jawalakhel, Lalitpur, Field Marshal Rana died at the age of 99. He was son of the then ruling Rana Prime Minister Juddha Shumsher Rana and his second wife, Mahila Maharani Krishna Kumari. According to a statement, the centenarian Field Marshal had joined the then Royal Nepal Army (RNA) at the age of 18 on 1 Shrawan 1988 B.S (1931) and was appointed to the post of Major at the Shri Pashupati Prasad Battalion. He became the Commander-in-Chief of the RNA on 15 Baisakh, 2017 B.S (1960) and retired on 15 Baisakh in 2022 B.S (1965). He was appointed Field Marshal after his retirement in 2022 B.S.
Jaya Prithvi Bahadur Singh, was a humanist, peace advocate, writer and social activist from Nepal. He devoted his life to social welfare and world peace. He is known mainly for humanitarianism, peace advocacy and human rights advocacy for education. He also contributed to the development of education, literature, journalism and health.
Bharat Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana was a Nepalese politician.
Ambalika Devi was a Nepalese writer and poet. She is considered as the first Nepalese woman novelist. Her novel Rajput Ramani was published in 1932.
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Sardar Rudra Raj Pande (1901–1987) was a Nepali educator, writer and historian. He served as the Headmaster of Durbar High School from 1925 to 1938, the Headmaster of Tri-Chandra College from 1938 to 1951 and the Vice Chancellor of Tribhuvan University from 1964 to 1969. He wrote multiple novels including Rupamati, which is considered as one of the earliest novels written in Nepali language. He also played an active role in establishing SLC examination board and Department of Archaeology.
Shanti Mishra was a Nepali lecturer, librarian, writer and translator. She was the first Nepali female full-time lecturer and first Nepali female librarian. She was the first female librarian of Tribhuvan University Central Library. She also served as the founding director of PEN chapter of Nepal.
Nara Dev Pandey was a Nepalese poet, writer and publisher. He served as the first talukdar (manager) of Gorkhapatra, one of the earliest Nepali newspaper. He ran the first private printing press— Pashupat press located in Thahiti, Kathmandu. He was part of a literary team known as Moti Mandali, alongside Motiram Bhatta. He is considered one of the eminent figure of Secondary era of Nepali literature.