India drops to rank 140 in press freedom, lowest since 2002

January 30, 2013 16:02

India has dropped nine places to 140th rank in the list of 179 countries in the latest World Press Freedom Index, which its authors said is the lowest for the "world's biggest democracy" since 2002.

"In Asia, India (140th, -9) is at its lowest since 2002 because of increasing impunity for violence against journalists and because Internet censorship continues to grow," Reporters Without Borders said in its World Press Freedom Index for the year 2013.

"China (173rd, +1) shows no sign of improving. Its prisons still hold many journalists and netizens, while increasingly unpopular Internet censorship continues to be a major obstacle to access to information."

As of last year, the list is topped by three European countries -- Finland, Netherlands and Norway. Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea continue to be at the bottom of the list as has been in the last three years.

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