Wikipedia:Points to note while debating in WikiProject India related AFDs

This essay offers some insight into India-related topics and lists few well-known issues related to the same. Please note that the purpose of this essay is not to suggest you to cast "keep" !votes in Wiki Project India related deletion discussions. You are advised to use common sense and wisdom, and encouraged to write your own opinion. You can however quote these points in relevant deletion discussions.

Google news
Google news is known to not crawl and index Indian newspaper and magazine articles properly. Please do not rely on 'Google news' hits count to formulate an opinion. Alternatively, you can use these Google custom search engines - English news and '''English, Hindi and regional languages.

Also note that Top-2 largest circulating Indian newspapers are published in Hindi language, and there are three in Top-five. Out of Top-10, only two newspapers are published in the English language. Consider all language sources for notability (WP:NEXIST). For every two English language articles, there should be at least three regional language articles.

Local language search
You can try to search in local language of the region where subject belongs to. For example, if the deletion discussion is about a Tamil author, search using Tamil language keywords. Also, please check if the article exists in InterWiki. If you don't know the language, ask for help at India's noticeboard.

Indian newspapers archive
Unfortunately most of the Indian newspaper archives do not store content for before 2000 or so. If a deletion discussion is about a book published in 1967 or so, searching internet may not be helpful.

Alternative names
Many Indian people and places have multiple names. Consider searching with alternative/local names. For example, the city of Tiruchirappalli is also called Tiruchi or Trichy or Trichinopoly.

Alternative spellings
Originating from varied Indian languages, the words you are trying to search can be anglicised in multiple ways. Try searching various probable spellings. For example, the surname Mukherjee is at times also spelled as Mukharji, Mookerjee, Mukerji or Mukherji.

Additional keywords
Sometimes you can add additional words in your query to get desired results (in particular when a term is open to multiple interpretations and/or have additional meanings). For examples in this discussion: Articles for deletion/Murugaa, your search query might be "Murugaa", "Murugaa (film)", "Murugaa (director's name), "Murugaa film (release year)".

Indian educational institutions
Most of Indian schools fail to satisfy the WP:ORG and WP:GNG criteria. Please note the Indian education structure: Nursery—Class X (i.e. from nursery standard to grade ten) and Class XI—XII (i.e. grade XI-XII). Schools offering Nursery—Class XII are almost certainly notable. Schools offering Nursery—Class X are generally considered notable. Please do Google search to learn more about these schools or try to locate official website which sometimes contain a media section.

See also: WP:SCHOOLOUTCOMES for common outcome and precedent regarding school-related deletion discussions.

Old non-Hindi movies
You will probably not get too many results for old non-Hindi movies on Internet. Still, try to search in local language of the film.

Politicians
You will not find too many articles on politicians and legislators unless they are Ministers too or involved in some notable controversy and/or political act. If a politician holds or ever held an elected seat, you can cite WP:NPOL in the related deletion discussion.

See also: Lok Sabha (Lower House) members list, Rajya Sabha (Upper House) members list. For members of state assemblies, use your preferred search engine to locate the respective state assembly's official website, which in most cases contain a menu option for members list.

Scholars
Indian media usually do not write about scholars and academicians unless they win or have been nominated for some notable awards. You can still try Google scholar or a simple web search. If you find 2-3 full length articles on an academic, you may consider the person notable, but, please comment on the basis of your observation.

Roads
Unlike US Roads, there might be a dearth of reliable sources for Indian streets and highways. See WP:ROADOUTCOMES for common outcome and precedent regarding road-related deletion discussions.

Small town and villages
Small town and villages generally do not get coverage in mainstream publications unless there is some kind of historical relevance or unfortunate disaster. According to 2011 census, there are about 8,000 towns and half-a-million villages in India. You can try your preferred search engine or WikiProject India's customised search engines.

Please note that legally recognised populated villages are generally considered notable. You can look in to Census of India's official website (here) to confirm if this is the case.

Books
Indian media doesn't give much weight to books published in India (especially non-English books) unless they are about/by a notable person or have won or been nominated for some notable awards.

Clans
There are uncountable number of clans in India; and the size and distribution of the clans vary greatly within the country. Please note that British raj sources are not considered reliable source of information (H. R. Rose is one prominent author, you may come around). You should try looking into Google books or WP:JSTOR.

See also: User:Sitush/CasteSources and some sections of User:Sitush/Common (e.g.: that on Gyan Publishers).

Length of articles
Please note that the length of articles published by the Indian media varies as does the topic. For example, you may encounter many 1-2 paragraph articles on Bollywood/TV related topics (films, soap operas, actors, etc.) but when it comes to Politicians and Companies, it gets to the length of what is published globally (minimum 4-5 paragraph). The 1-2 paragraph articles on showbiz industry should be considered equivalent to 3-4 paragraph articles published by the Western Media.

Also note that an article of an exceptional length on Indian companies are most probably an advertorial and should not be considered a reliable source (They are paid-news. Skip to the last paragraph and if you see contact details of company, or blatant promotional tone -- it is an advertorial.).

Find resource
See also: Resource Request, Wikipedia Library
 * You can use these Search operators to customise your search-results.

Google custom search

 * English newspapers search
 * English & Hindi newspapers search

Newspaper and magazine archives

 * Google News - Archive (see also: search help)
 * Times of India - Web archive (2001 - present), E-paper archive (2003 - present)
 * The Hindu - Web (2009 - present), Print (2000 - present)
 * Indian Express - Web (2002 - present), Print (1997 - 2014)
 * Deccan Chronicle - E-paper archive (1941 - present)(registration required)
 * The Telegraph - Archive (2009 - present)
 * India Today - Print (2004 - 2007)
 * Dainik Bhaskar - E-paper archive (2014 - present)
 * Zamin Ryot - E-paper archive (1930 - present)
 * Center for Research Libraries South Asian Newspapers Archive - A number of newspapers from 1960s to 1980s

Digital library

 * Digital library of India - Digital library of India (both hosted by IISc)
 * National Library of India (hosted by Ministry of Culture, Gov. of India)
 * National Digital Library (hosted by IIT Kharagpur)
 * Press Academy of Andhra Pradesh (hosted by Press Academy of Andhra Pradesh); Alternate

Get help
If you need help to find sources or with anything else related to India, you can ask at India's noticeboard or the editors mentioned below: (feel free to add your name below if you think you can help too).
 * , Indian languages known: Bengali
 * , Indian languages known: Bengali
 * , Indian languages known: Bengali & Hindi
 * , Indian languages known: Hindi, Bengali and Punjabi
 * , Indian languages known: Hindi, Haryanvi, Sanskrit, Bhojpuri and Awadhi
 * , Indian languages known: Hindi and Bengali.
 * , Indian languages known: Tamil and Hindi
 * , Indian languages known: Punjabi, Hindi and Bengali
 * , Indian languages known: Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Oriya, Haryanvi, and Bhojpuri
 * , Indian languages known: Telugu
 * , Indian languages known: Bengali, Hindi
 * , Indian languages known: Malayalam
 * , Indian languages known: Malayalam