Dainik Bhaskar launches Ratlam, Shimla editions

Dainik Bhaskar is aggressively extending its footprint to expand and grow in Tier I and II cities. The leading Hindi daily has rolled out two new editions in Ratlam (Madhya Pradesh) and Shimla (Himachal Pradesh).

The Ratlam edition will cater to readers in Ratlam, Neemuch and Mandsaur. Earlier, these areas were catered to by the newspaper’s Ujjain edition. The Shimla edition will cover readers in the state capital and also reach out to people in the surrounding districts of Solan and Sirmour.

Speaking to afaqs!, Rajiv Jaitly, president, sales and marketing, Dainik Bhaskar Corp., says, “The two launches are part of a well thought out plan to expand our footprint in Tier I and Tier II cities. We are always engaged in the process of mapping new markets to weigh their potential for future growth. The new editions are thus in line with our perspective of non-metro markets being seen as places providing opportunities for our brand’s expansion and growth.”

The editorial teams for both the editions will be headed by Shravan Garg, group editor, Dainik Bhaskar. In terms of editorial content, the newly launched editions will report on national, international and city news. Both the editions will provide indepth coverage of news related to local developments, politics, sports, tourism and business.

Jaitly says, “We have started off with trade promotions for the two new offerings and we will add some measure of advertising from our readers' perspective, too. However, when it comes to reaching out to advertisers or brands, the new launches are an extension of our regular business and thus serve to provide more options and access to our existing business associates.”

With the addition of the Ratlam and Shimla editions, Dainik Bhaskar now has 26 editions spread across eight states.

Besides its flagship daily, Dainik Bhaskar, the company publishes other titles such as Divya Bhaskar, Business Bhaskar, DNA, DB Star, Saurashtra Samachar and Prabhat Kiran.