https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Alfred_D%27CruzAlfred D'Cruz - Revision history2026-08-28T23:59:42ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alfred_D%27Cruz&diff=485500&oldid=prevGhaiinfra: Put Up Some Data From Scratch2026-02-18T21:10:08Z<p>Put Up Some Data From Scratch</p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{orphan|date=February 2026}}<br />
{{Short description|Indian journalist (1921–2012)}}<br />
{{Infobox person<br />
| name = Alfred D'Cruz<br />
| image = Alfred D'Cruz.jpg<br />
| birth_date = {{birth date|1921|11|23|df=y}}<br />
| birth_place = [[Saligao]], [[Goa]], [[Portuguese India]]<br />
| death_date = {{death date and age|2012|06|01|1921|11|23|df=y}}<br />
| death_place = [[Bandra]], [[Mumbai]], India<br />
| education = [[St. Xavier's College, Mumbai]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|B.A.]] Honours in English Literature)<br />
| occupation = {{hlist|Journalist|historian|author}}<br />
| employer = {{unbulleted list|''[[The Times of India]]''|''[[The Sunday Observer]]''|''[[Kuwait Times]]''}}<br />
| known_for = First Indian sub-editor of ''The Times of India''<br />
| notable_works = ''Saligao: Focus on a Picturesque Goan Village'' (1973)<br />
| children = 4<br />
| awards = <br />
}}<br />
'''Alfred D'Cruz''' (23 November 1921 – 1 June 2012) was an Indian journalist, historian, and author. He is noted for being the first Indian to be employed as a sub-editor at ''[[The Times of India]]'' in 1947, where he worked for four decades.<ref name="TOIMumbai">{{Cite news |date=2012-06-22 |title=Veteran journalist Alfred D'Cruz passed away |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/veteran-journalist-alfred-dcruz-passed-away/articleshow/14324803.cms |work=The Times of India |access-date=2025-11-20}}</ref><ref name="DaijiTribute">{{Cite web |last=D'Cruz |first=Sunil |title=A Tribute to Alfred D'Cruz on his First Death Anniversary |url=https://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay.aspx?newsID=219790 |website=Daijiworld |access-date=2025-11-20}}</ref> He was also an editor at ''[[The Sunday Observer]]'' and the ''[[Kuwait Times]]''.<ref name="TheGoan">{{Cite web |title=Remembering author, historian & journalist late Alfred D'Cruz on his birth centenary |url=https://www.thegoan.net/goa-news/remembering-author-historian-journalist-late-alfred-d%E2%80%99cruz-on-his-birth-centenary/91725.html |website=The Goan EveryDay |date=2022-11-23 |access-date=2025-11-20}}</ref><br />
<br />
==Early life and education==<br />
D'Cruz was born on 23 November 1921 in the village of [[Saligao]] in [[Bardez]], [[Goa]].<ref name="DaijiTribute" /><ref name="TheGoan" /> Born underweight and in poor health, he was not expected to survive infancy, but he lived to an advanced age.<ref name="TheGoan" /> He completed his education at [[St. Xavier's College, Mumbai]], earning a [[Bachelor of Arts|B.A. (Hons)]] degree in English Literature. During his time as a student from 1942 to 1947, he was inspired by [[Mahatma Gandhi]] and [[Lokmanya Tilak]] to participate in the [[Quit India Movement]] and the student [[Satyagraha]] against British colonial rule.<ref name="DaijiTribute" /><br />
<br />
==Career==<br />
===''The Times of India''===<br />
In 1947, D'Cruz was hired by Sir Francis Low, the British editor of ''The Times of India'', making him the only Indian sub-editor among the British staff at the time.<ref name="TOIIndia">{{Cite news |date=2012-06-22 |title=TOI's 'first' Indian scribe passes away |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/tois-first-indian-scribe-passes-away/articleshow/14327372.cms |work=The Times of India |access-date=2025-11-20}}</ref> On 15 August 1947, he wrote the front-page headline "India wakes up to a new life" to mark the [[Independence of India|nation's independence]].<ref name="DaijiTribute" /><br />
He served as the Chief Sub-Editor of the newspaper until 1982, overseeing the production of daily editions and working with colleagues such as [[R. K. Laxman]], [[Mario Miranda]], and [[Girilal Jain]].<ref name="TOIMumbai" /><ref name="DaijiTribute" /> He was the only journalist to substitute for [[Behram Contractor]] (known as "Busybee") in writing the "Round & About" column for the ''[[Evening News of India]]''.<ref name="TOIMumbai" /><br />
After retiring from the daily news desk, D'Cruz continued with the Times Group as the editor of ''The Times of India Directory and Year Book'' (including ''Who's Who in India'').<ref name="DaijiAward">{{Cite web |title=Panaji: Alfred D'Cruz honoured with Laxmidas Borkar Memorial Award |url=https://www.daijiworld.com/chan/sponsoredDisplay.aspx?sID=4076 |website=Daijiworld |date=2014-02-25 |access-date=2025-11-20}}</ref> In 1985, he produced a special supplement titled "Down the corridors of Times" to commemorate the newspaper's 147th anniversary, which detailed the history of the publication.<ref name="DaijiAward" /><br />
<br />
===Later career===<br />
Following his tenure at ''The Times of India'', D'Cruz worked as the News Editor for ''The Sunday Observer'' in Mumbai from 1986 to 1989.<ref name="DaijiTribute" /> At the age of 67, he moved to the [[Middle East]] to join the ''Kuwait Times'' as an Assistant Editor. He was working at the newspaper's desk during the [[Invasion of Kuwait]] by Iraq in 1990 and was responsible for breaking the news of the invasion to the international community.<ref name="TheGoan" /> D'Cruz was later evacuated on a relief flight after living in tents in the [[Jordan]]ian desert with other Indian expatriates.<ref name="TheGoan" /><br />
<br />
==Literary works==<br />
D'Cruz co-authored the book ''Saligao: Focus on a Picturesque Goan Village'' (1973), which was released during the centenary celebrations of the Mae de Deus church. The book, featuring illustrations by [[Mario Miranda]], documents the history and culture of his native village and has been included in the collections of the [[Library of Congress]] and several universities in the United States.<ref name="DaijiAward" /><ref name="DaijiTribute" /> He also wrote a history of St. Theresa's Parish in [[Bandra]], where he resided.<ref name="TheGoan" /><br />
<br />
==Personal life and death==<br />
D'Cruz was married and had four children: a son, Sunil, and three daughters. One of his daughters, Susheela Soares, also worked at ''The Times of India''.<ref name="TOIMumbai" /><br />
He died on 1 June 2012 in Bandra, Mumbai, at the age of 91.<ref name="TOIMumbai" /><br />
<br />
==Awards==<br />
* Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Journalism: Awarded posthumously by the Journalist Association of India (JAI) in September 2012.<ref name="DaijiTribute" /><br />
* [[Laxmidas Borkar]] Memorial Award: Awarded posthumously by the Bori Development Trust in 2014.<ref name="DaijiAward" /><br />
<br />
==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
<br />
{{Authority control}}<br />
<br />
{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Cruz, Alfred}}<br />
[[Category:1921 births]]<br />
[[Category:2012 deaths]]<br />
[[Category:Journalists from Goa]]<br />
[[Category:Writers from Goa]]<br />
[[Category:People from Portuguese India]]<br />
[[Category:The Times of India journalists]]</div>Ghaiinfra