New Urdu daily enters the scene in Hyderabad

Televisionpoint.com Team
Hyderabad has the distinction of being one of the largest hub of Urdu newspapers in the Indian subcontinent and is second only to Karachi.

Existing Urdu dailies are, however, gearing up to meet the challenge of Etemad, which is being printed using ultra-modern machinery. It also boasts a top-class editorial team. The daily is being brought out by the family of MIM supremo and former MP Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi. It will be the fourth major Urdu daily from the capital city, the other three being Munsif, Siasat and Rehnuma-e-Deccan.

Media circles are agog with the management's offer of generous pay scales and perks to Urdu journalists, calligraphists and computer operators. Urdu journalists are not a highly-paid lot and usually take home about Rs 6,000 per month. However, it is learnt that Etemad scribes are getting amounts ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000. Attracted by the offer, even journalists from North India have applied for posts in the newspaper.

"The combined circulation of Urdu newspapers in Hyderabad is more than that of any city in India, Only Mumbai comes somewhere near." said Syed Fazil Hussain Parvez, who edits the popu lar Urdu weekly Gawah.

However, other managements feel that the new daily would find its own space and will not eat into the circulation of existing papers. "The circulation of Siasat was not affected by the re-launch of Munsif, Hyderabad has space for more papers." says Siasat editor Zahid Ali Khan.

However, Siasat is going to change its design and editorial content to take on competition. Rehnuma-e-Deccan, the oldest Urdu newspaper in the Indian subcontinent, is also going in for the latest printing machinery while Munsif is planning to launch an Urdu TV channel. "There is no dearth of Urdu readers in Hyderabad," observes Nasim Arifi, editor of Etemad.

In fact, Urdu newspapers have created and increased their reader base through educational programmes. The Abid Ali Khan Educational Foundation, set up in memory of the founder of Siasat, teaches Urdu to about 25,000 people every year. Munsif also runs Urdu schools in the city.

"While Urdu is losing ground in the north, it is gaining popularity in Hyderabad," says Syed Vicaruddin, editor of Rehnuma-e-Deccan. "Our standards are the best."

According to Nasim Airifi, Etemad is going to be the most modern Urdu newspaper in the country both in terms of quality and editorial content.