News Round-Up - Agriculture

It is evident that in Travancore, there is growing awareness among farmers and the general populace...

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May 09, 1906

Travancore Education Department (Three)

(Sasthaav) The important duties assigned to the education secretary can be summed up as follows: to...

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January 15, 1908

Commission on the System of Matrilineal Inheritance

(“Marumakkathayam” is defined as the system of inheritance in which descent is traced through the fe...

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September 26, 1908

Some Diabolical Plans of the Education Department (Three)

In the previous issues of the newspaper, we had described hardships being heaped on primary school t...

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August 10, 1910

From the Reporter's Notebook

A piece in the series of articles about the turmoil in Turkey being published in the Maratha Gazette...

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About the Collection

The Svadesabhimani was a weekly Malayalam language newspaper founded by the noted writer and journalist Vakkom Abdul Khader Moulavi (1873-1932), who was the owner and publisher and its managing editor. This digital collection contains the original Malayalam and their English translations.

Throughout its existence, it was funded through the personal funds of Vakkom Moulavi, who imported a modern press from Britain. The newspaper began publication in Anjengo, a small village in the princely state of Travancore, on 19 January 1905. Chirayinkeezhu C.P Govinda Pillai was the first editor for one year, after which Sri. K. Ramakrishna Pillai became the editor. The newspaper ceased publication on 26 September 1910, when it was banned by a Royal Proclamation, the editor Ramakrishna Pillai was exiled and the press was confiscated.

The Svadesabhimani served to inform the public in Travancore, as well as in the Malayalam speaking regions, about local, national and international issues. It stood apart from other Malayalam newspapers of the time in exposing corruption in the government, analysing and critiquing government policies, discussing important issues of social and religious reform and bringing news of the national anti-colonial movement and international developments. It is considered a trailblazer in Malayalam journalism, contributing to the development of a new political consciousness in the state.