The Karnataka government on Thursday, April 2, announced to be the first state to launch a fake news fact check team. The fact check team, formed under the Department of Information and Public Relations is the first of its kind in the nation.
Following the move, the Centre has also planned to launch a Fact Check Unit (FCU) under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to keep a check on the novel coronavirus spread.
A much-needed move by the state is receiving much acclaims from the public over social media.
Senior Karnataka IAS officer Manivannan took to Twitter stating that the team has around 20,000 volunteers. "We have around 20,000 volunteers in this Fact-checking team and we slay rumours and fake news within a few hours," tweeted Manivannan.
Centre creates a web portal
Meanwhile, the states and the UTs were asked to submit an action taken report to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) so it can be informed to the Supreme Court that took on the Centre in a hearing of a plea over the panic created by fake news leading to the mass movement of migrant labourers, their plight and untold suffering following lockdown.
The states were also told that the apex court, however, has expressed satisfaction with the proactive and timely actions taken by the Central government for preventing the spread of novel coronavirus or COVID-19 but had taken serious note of the panic created by fake news leading to a mass movement of migrant labourers.
