In 1959, eight of India’s biggest newspapers came together to launch a news agency to break the monopoly of the Press Trust of India. Six decades later, United News of India is on ventilator support. Salaries of permanent staff have gone partially unpaid for five years, company properties lie seized, and court cases against the agency keep piling up, the latest being an insolvency suit.
It has been a slow death, caused by gradual decline in subscriptions since 2006 and continued internal resistance to potential deals that could bring in much-needed funds. The fatal cut ostensibly was the state broadcaster Prasar Bharati quitting UNI, in late 2020, wiping out lakhs in monthly revenue.
