Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 05: Kerala Chief Minister A K Antony today said `The Hindu' daily had played a pioneering role in the evolution of India as a mature democracy.

"The daily had a pivotal role in the struggle for independence. It had kept patriotic ideals and high standards of professionalism," he said, inaugurating the 125th anniversary of `The Hindu' in the state here this evening.
The daily, having a great tradition of being the national newspaper, had given whole-hearted support to the development of the country. He wanted the daily to help promote the state for its development.
"I have been reading `The Hindu' since my schooldays as my father was a regular subscriber," he said, adding that credibility, the greatest asset of the newspaper, should be maintained in the future also.
Antony wanted newspapers to maintain journalistic ethics, as well as balance and restraint, to avoid controversies.
In his welcome speech, n ram, chief editor of `The Hindu' said the daily had made use of its columns to reflect the democratic aspirations of the people and values like equality, fair play and justice from its early days.
Kerala had been a leading growth area for the daily over the past decade and had become the largest-selling and most widely read English language daily in the state, he said.
Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan, Kerala State Council for Science and Technology Council Chairman M S Valiathan and Kalady Sanskrit University Vice-Chancellor K N Panikkar also spoke. N Murali, joint managing director of the daily proposed the vote of thanks.
Bureau Report