{"id":4774,"date":"2026-01-06T10:51:22","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T05:21:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/?p=4774"},"modified":"2026-01-07T11:52:05","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T06:22:05","slug":"press-council-of-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/press-council-of-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Press Council of India, Composition, Functions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The\u00a0<strong>Press Council of India<\/strong>\u00a0is a\u00a0<strong>statutory, quasi-judicial autonomous\u00a0<\/strong>body re-established in 1979 under the Press Council Act, 1978. Initially formed in 1966 under the Indian Press Council Act, of 1965, it was based on the recommendations of the\u00a0<strong>first Press Commission,<\/strong>\u00a0led by\u00a0<strong>Justice G. S. Rajadhyakhsa<\/strong>.<\/p>\r\n<p>Despite the changes in legislation, the twin objectives of the Press Council of India, which are to preserve press freedom and uphold journalistic standards, have remained consistent.<\/p>\r\n<h2>About Press Council of India<\/h2>\r\n<p>The Press Council of India (PCI) is a statutory quasi-judicial autonomous authority, re-established in 1979 under the Press Council Act, 1978. Its primary objectives are:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Preserving the freedom of the press.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Maintaining and improving the standards of newspapers and news agencies in India.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h3>Press Council of India Composition<\/h3>\r\n<p>The Press Council of India seeks to improve the quality and standards of newspapers and news agencies throughout the country. The Council is a body corporate having perpetual succession consisting of a Chairman and 28 members.<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><strong>Chairman:\u00a0<\/strong>The Chairman, typically a<strong>\u00a0retired Supreme Court judge,<\/strong>\u00a0is nominated by a committee that includes the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and an elected representative from the 28 members.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Other Members:<\/strong>\u00a0Of the 28 members,\u00a0<strong>thirteen represent working journalists<\/strong>, which include six editors and seven other working journalists, other than editors of newspapers.\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><strong>Six members<\/strong>\u00a0represent newspaper owners or managers, with two each from large, medium, and small newspapers.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>One member<\/strong>\u00a0comes from the news agency sector.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>In addition, the Press Council of India comprises five representatives from Parliament\u2014three nominated by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and two by the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Three members representing education, law, and literature are nominated by the University Grants Commission, Bar Council of India, and Sahitya Akademi.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2>Press Council of India Powers<\/h2>\r\n<p>The Press Council of India (PCI) functions not only as a\u00a0<strong>watchdog over the press<\/strong>\u00a0but also aims to inspire a fresh perspective within the journalistic fraternity. It is founded on the belief that in a democratic society, the press must balance both freedom and responsibility. The Press Council of India holds following powers while fulfilling its responsibilities:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><strong>Advisory Role:<\/strong>\u00a0The Press Council of India holds an advisory role, enabling it to conduct studies and express opinions on bills, legislation, and other matters related to the press, either<strong>\u00a0suo-motu<\/strong>\u00a0or upon referral by the government.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Cognizance of Public Issues:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0It can also take cognizance of public issues concerning its statutory duties and form\u00a0<strong>Special Committees\u00a0<\/strong>to conduct on-the-spot inquiries.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Actions for Violating Journalistic Ethics:\u00a0<\/strong>The Press Council of India can address complaints regarding violations of journalistic ethics or misconduct by editors or journalists.\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>It may investigate these complaints, summon witnesses, take sworn testimony, and request public records.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Additionally, the Press Council of India may issue warnings or admonish newspapers, news agencies, editors, or journalists.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Authority to Safeguard Press Freedom:\u00a0<\/strong>Additionally, the Council has the authority to comment on any authority, including the government, for interfering with press freedom. Its decisions are conclusive and cannot be contested in any court.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Limitation on Powers: The powers of the Press Council of India are limited in two key ways.<\/strong><\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Limited Authority in Enforcing Guidelines:\u00a0<\/strong>It has restricted authority in enforcing its guidelines, as it cannot impose penalties on newspapers, news agencies, editors, or journalists for violations.<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong>Limitations in Regulating Electronic Media:\u00a0<\/strong>While PCI oversees the operations of print media, it does not have the jurisdiction to regulate electronic media such as radio, television, or internet platforms.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2>Press Council of India Functions<\/h2>\r\n<p>The Press Council of India works to uphold the integrity and standards of the press, ensuring its role as a cornerstone of democratic society. As the fourth pillar of democracy, the media, including the press, plays a crucial role in disseminating information and protecting the rights and voices of citizens.<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>In this context, the Press Council helps newspapers maintain their independence and builds\u00a0<strong>a code of conduct\u00a0<\/strong>for journalists and news agencies.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>It also ensures \"<strong>high standards of public taste<\/strong>\" while promoting responsibility among citizens.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>The PCI monitors developments that could limit news circulation, helping to protect the free exchange of information.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse;width: 100%;height: 200px\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr style=\"height: 25px\">\r\n<td class=\"tb-color\" style=\"width: 50%;height: 25px;text-align: center\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Other Related Posts<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr style=\"height: 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fraternity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":14831,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[428,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-4774","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-quest-level-3","8":"tag-press-council-of-india","9":"tag-quest"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4774"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4774\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22878,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4774\/revisions\/22878"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}