New Delhi, June 23: A national-level apex body of the state-level and democratically managed press clubs in the country has been formed. Eight leading press clubs from across India have joined ranks as founding members for forming a non-partisan apex body called the Federation of Press Clubs (FPC). The Federation of Press Clubs has been registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.

The first meeting of the Governing Council was held at the Press Club of India on June 22, 2026. This endeavour will lend a nation-wide collective voice to the most vibrant organisations of media persons, which are represented by various press clubs across the country. The eight founding members of the Federation of Press Clubs are: Press Club of India, Mumbai Press Club; Press Club, Kolkata; Press Club, Hyderabad; Chandigarh Press Club; State Press Club, M.P; Gauhati Press Club and Agartala Press Club. The FPC will be managed by a 10-member Governing Council comprising: Mr. Gautam Lahiri –President (Former President of Press Club of India) Mr. Snehasis Sur –Vice-President (Serving President of Press Club, Kolkata) Mr. Samar Khadas–Vice-President (Serving President of Mumbai Press Club) Mr. Vijay Reddy–Vice-President (Serving President of Press Club Hyderabad) Mr. Saurabh Duggal–Secretary General (Serving President of Chandigarh Press Club) Ms. Sangeets Barooah Pisharoty–Assistant Secretary General (Serving President of Press Club of India) Mr. Neeraj Thakur–Treasurer (Former Secretary General of Press Club of India) Mr. Praveen Khariwal–Executive Member (Serving President of State Press Club, M.P) Mr. Pranab Sarkar–Executive Member (Serving President of Agartala Press Club) Mr. Kagen Kalita—Executive Member (Serving President of Gauhati Press Club) The Governing Council in one of its first decisions has decided that membership to Federation of Press Clubs will be opened to other press clubs and other similar press bodies in India in the coming weeks. The objectives of this pan-India collective of press clubs are to coordinate and strengthen the activities of its member bodies for the advancement of press freedom, protection of journalists, support media professionals for dealing with the challenges thrown up by an ever-changing media landscape in the age of radical technological transformation, and advocacy for better working conditions for journalists.

According to the rules and regulations of FPC, membership will be granted to those press clubs and media bodies representing journalists operating in various states, which have an active registration, conduct regular elections according to their constitution or Articles of Association, and file statutory audited statement of accounts with the government under the prevailing laws in the country as defined under the provisions of the Societies Registration Act, 1860; Companies Act 2013, or the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. Speaking about the formation of the Federation of Press Clubs, its founding President and former President of Press Club of India, Mr. Gautam Lahiri said: “The formation of the Federation of Press Clubs is a culmination of a process that started in 2016, when the need was felt for strengthening the collective voice of various press clubs in India. This is a completely non-partisan body, which will work for the betterment of the profession and will try to develop a support system for journalists, who work in various parts of the country without any significant social security net. Protection of journalists and dignity of life are essential for the survival of the profession.” Weighing in on the purpose of the Federation of Press Clubs, Mr. Snehasis Sur, its Vice-President and current President of Press Club, Kolkata said: “Today, the media landscape across the world has fragmented as the traditional models of sustenance have collapsed, which have had a profound effect on the profession of journalism.

In such a situation, it’s important for all stakeholders who are invested in press freedom—an essential feature of democracy—to come together to pool their ideas and resources for dealing with emerging challenges.” Addressing the need to engage with smaller press bodies that function at the district level for helping them in better access of journalistic resources, Mr. Vijay Reddy, Vice-President of FPC and serving President of Press Club Hyderabad said: “The majority of journalism happens in the small towns of India, where journalists turn to district-level press clubs for help in times of crisis, but they suffer from the lack of adequate resources to tackle problems. The FPC will reach out for helping them with better access to resources and network them with other stakeholders to overcoming their problems.” At a time when the trust in the traditional media is shrinking, it’s important for the FPC to function in a transparent manner.

Emphasising on this crucial public-facing aspect of the organisation, Mr. Samar Khadas, VicePresident of FPC and current President of Mumbai Press Club said: “We need to lead by example and function in a transparent and open manner by remaining a non-partisan organisation at all levels and avoid any conflict of interest. At the same time, we need to engage with journalists working in various parts of the country through their parent organisations for building awareness about practicing ethical journalism.”

The FPC has been structured in such a manner that press clubs operating in various parts of the country are adequately represented and have an equal say in its functioning. “It’s essential that the Federation of Press Clubs to be the collective voice of journalists working in any part of the country. The composition of the founding organisations of FPC shows that their zones are represented in a fair and democratic manner in this apex body of press clubs,” said Mr. Saurabh Duggal, Secretary General of FPC and current President of Chandigarh Press Club. Establishing the Federation of Press Clubs is an ambitious project for strengthening press freedom and freedom of expression under Article 19(1)(A).

Emphasising on the important role that the FPC will play in underlining this essential nature of the journalism, Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty, Assistant Secretary General of FPC and serving President of Press Club of India said: “The collectivisation of various stakeholders of press freedom is the need of the hour for guarding and expansion of freedom of expression as envisioned in our Constitution.

The formation of Federation of Press Clubs is an important step in that direction. The world over, organisations and people, who are invested in press freedom, are forming collectives to strengthen each other. In the same spirit, the FPC will functioning by adopting global best practices so that one of the most important features of democracy is served better.”