Journalistic Ethics & Standards

TheUtkal.com recognises the responsibility that comes with publishing news and current affairs information to the public.

As a digital news publisher operating in India, we seek to follow applicable laws and the applicable Code of Ethics governing publishers of news and current affairs on digital media. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting administers Part III of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 for such publishers.

Our Standards

TheUtkal.com does not knowingly:

• Fabricate news or events.
• Invent quotations or sources.
• Present rumours as established facts.
• Deliberately distort material facts.
• Plagiarise journalism.
• Manipulate visual material in a way intended to deceive readers.
• Conceal a material conflict of interest.
• Accept payment for undisclosed editorial coverage.

Fairness

We seek to present significant sides of a matter fairly, particularly where a report concerns allegations, disputes or serious accusations.

Fairness does not require giving every claim equal weight. It requires responsible treatment of relevant facts and reasonable opportunity for response where appropriate.

Public Interest

We distinguish between information that is merely interesting to the public and information that is genuinely in the public interest.

Images and Video

Images and videos should be used in a manner that does not knowingly misrepresent their context.

Material obtained from third parties must be used on an appropriate lawful basis.

Artificial Intelligence

TheUtkal.com may use artificial-intelligence tools for limited editorial or operational purposes, including research assistance, transcription, translation, formatting and other support functions.

AI output is not automatically treated as accurate.

Human editorial review remains responsible for factual verification and the final published material.

TheUtkal.com will not knowingly publish fabricated quotations, invented sources or fictional events as genuine journalism.

Accountability

Readers may raise concerns about published material through our grievance and corrections procedures.

We consider legitimate concerns on their merits and may correct or update material where appropriate.