India ranked 157th in RSF’s 2026 World Press Freedom Index
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India has been ranked 157th out of 180 countries in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on April 30, falling six places from its 151st rank in 2025.
The global press freedom index was topped by Norway, followed by the Netherlands, Estonia, Denmark, and Sweden. Saudi Arabia, Iran, China, North Korea, and Eritrea ranked at the bottom.
RSF said the global average score in the index had reached its lowest level in 25 years, with more than half the countries now classified under “difficult” or “very serious” conditions for press freedom.
India ranked below most of its neighbours, including Pakistan at 153, Bangladesh at 152, Bhutan at 150, Sri Lanka at 134, and Nepal at 87. China ranked 178th.
The organisation said press freedom in India was in crisis due to rising violence against journalists, concentrated media ownership, and increasing political alignment among media outlets.
RSF stated that since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, India’s media landscape had entered an “unofficial state of emergency.” It pointed to the influence of large business groups, including Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and businessman Gautam Adani, over major media outlets.
The report also referred to the rise of “godi media,” describing it as a challenge to pluralism in mainstream journalism.
According to RSF, journalists critical of the government face online harassment, intimidation, criminal prosecutions, and arrests. It also said anti-terror and colonial-era laws, including sedition and defamation laws, are increasingly being used against journalists.
The report noted that government advertising remains a major source of revenue for media organisations, giving both central and state governments influence over editorial content.
RSF also raised concerns over the lack of diversity in newsrooms and said women and minority voices remain underrepresented in mainstream media coverage.
The organisation added that India remains one of the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists, with an average of two to three media workers killed each year in connection with their work.