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The bird in the video is an ‘Andean condor’ and the video was shot in Argentina - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 20, 2020
A video is being widely shared on social media with the claim that the bird in the video is ‘Jatayu’ and it was sighted in a forest in Kerala. ‘Jatayu’ bird is mentioned in the Hindu mythology ‘Ramayana’ and is considered divine by Hindus.  Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Video of ‘Jatayu’ bird sighted at Sadayamangalam forest in Kerala.
Fact: The bird seen in the video is not ‘Jatayu’, it is an ‘Andean condor’. The video shows it being freed by rescuers in Argentina in 2014. So, the claim is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the video were subjected to reverse image search technique, a certain keyframe was found in an article of ‘The Dodo’. As per the article, the bird seen in the video is an ‘Andean condor’ named ‘Sayani’ and it was freed by rescuers in Argentina after its treatment in 2014. In 2012, ‘Sayani’ was found close to death in Catamarca (Argentina) after being poisoned by the ranchers in the region. Other articles about the incident can be read here and here. The complete video of ‘Sayani’ being set free by rescuers can be seen here.
To conclude, the bird seen in the video is an ‘Andean condor’ and the video was shot in Argentina.
Did you watch our new video in the DECODE series?

created: February 20, 2020


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The bird in the video is ‘Lyrebird’. The video was taken at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 2, 2019
A video of a bird is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the bird in the video is called ‘Suraga’ bird in Tamil and it took 9 photographers for over 62 days to capture the posted video. The same video was also posted by Kiran Bedi with a similar claim on her social media accounts [Facebook (archived) and Twitter (archived)]. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
19 photographers strived for 62 days to capture the posted video of ‘Suraga’ bird.
Fact: The bird in the video is ‘Lyrebird’. It is endemic to Australia. The video was taken by ‘Four Finger Photography’ at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia. The photographers did not strive for 62 days to capture the video. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the posted video were run through the Google Reverse Image Search, an article by ‘News18’ with the same video was found in the search results. Also, ‘The Indian Express’ has published an article on this video in October-2019. According to the article in the ‘News18’, the bird in the video is ‘Lyrebird’. The following description about the bird can be read in the article: ‘Lyrebird is known for its incredible skill to accurately mimic sounds of the surroundings they inhabit. The birds are endemic to Australia. They have a complex syrinx-the vocal organ in birds, which give them the capacity to mimic.’
An extended version of the same video was posted by the ‘ABC Adelaide’ with the following description: ‘Lyrebird in Adelaide Zoo incredible mimics’, and gives the video credits to the ‘Four Finger Photography’.
On searching the Facebook account of ‘Four Finger Photography’, videos and photos related to the ‘Lyrebird – Adelaide Zoo’ were found.
It was found that another video was also shared with a similar claim previously.
To sum it up, the bird in the video is ‘Lyrebird’. The video was taken at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia.
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source: news-factly

created: December 2, 2019

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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The birthday of Rahul Gandhi does not fall on the date when "Mera Naam Joker" was released - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 6, 2023
A graphic on social media shows that the birthdays of Congress leaders Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi, and Rahul Gandhi allegedly coincide with World Deaf and Dumb Day, Anti-Corruption Day, and the release of Mera Naam Joker, respectively, while PM Narendra Modi’s birthday coincides with Vishwakarma Jayanthi. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: The birthdays of Congress leaders Manmohan Singh, Rahul Gandhi, and Sonia Gandhi fall on the exact dates as “World Deaf and Dumb Day,” the release of “Mera Naam Joker,” and International Anti-corruption Day, while Narendra Modi’s birthday coincides with Vishwakarma Jayanthi.
False: It is a fact that Sonia Gandhi’s birthday and Narendra Modi’s birthday coincide with International Anti-Corruption Day and Vishwakarma Jayanthi respectively. However, Manmohan Singh’s birthday which is 26 September is world Deaf and Dumb day according to few news reports while this is not listed in the International days and weeks list of the UN. The birthday of Rahul Gandhi does not fall on the exact date as the release of “Mera Naam Joker.” Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
There are four claims in the viral graphic; let’s find the details behind them individually.
Claim 1: India’s former prime minister, Dr Manmohan Singh’s birthday coincides with World Deaf and Dumb Day on 26 September.
According to the ‘PM India’ website, Manmohan Singh was born on 26 September 1932 (here), which is the date mentioned in the claim. But a search on the internet for the date on which the World Deaf and Dumb Day is observed revealed that except for a few news reports which claim 26 September to be the World Deaf and Dumb Day, there is no such day in the list of International days and weeks available on the United Nations website.
However, an International Day of Sign Languages is observed (here and here) on 23 September every year but not on 26 September.  We could not find any credible information to confirm if 26 September is observed as the World Deaf and Dumb Day.
Claim 2: Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s birthday coincides with International Anti-Corruption Day, which is observed on 9 December.
According to Times of India and NDTV news reports, Sonia Gandhi’s birthday is on 9 December, which coincides with International Anti-Corruption Day (here). This claim is true.
Claim 3: Rahul Gandhi was born on Mera Naam Joker’s release date, 18 December 1970.
According to the official website of the Indian National Congress, Rahul Gandhi was born on 19 June 1970, while, as per IMDB, Mera Naam Joker was released on 18 December 1970 (also read this). Hence, this claim is false.
Claim 4: PM Narendra Modi’s Birthday coincides with Vishwakarma Jayanthi.
Vishwakarma Jayanthi is celebrated every year either on the 17th or 18th of September (here).
This year, it was celebrated on 17 September, PM Modi’s birthdate. According to the PM India website, he was born on 17 September 1950. Hence, this claim is also true.
To sum up, the birthday of Rahul Gandhi does not fall on the exact date on which “Mera Naam Joker” was released.

created: October 6, 2023


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The BJP received little more than half of the total donations of Rs. 16,492 crore received via electoral bonds - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 20, 2024
After the Election Commission of India (ECI) released details concerning donations to various political parties via electoral bonds, Union Minister Amit Shah asserted during a media address that “the Bharatiya Janata Party has received bonds worth approximately Rs 6,000 crore. The total bonds are worth Rs 20,000 crore. So where did bonds worth Rs 14,000 crore go?”. Subsequently, similar assertions made by Shah have been circulating on social media platforms (here, here & here), suggesting that “with 303 MPs, the BJP received donations amounting to Rs 6,000 crore, whereas the opposition, comprising a total of 242 MPs, received donations totalling Rs 14,000 crore.” In this article, we aim to fact-check the accuracy of these claims.
Claim: With 303 MPs, the BJP received donations amounting to Rs 6,000 crores, whereas the opposition, comprising a total of 242 MPs, received donations totaling Rs 14,000 crore through electoral bonds.
Fact: The total sum of political donations received by the political parties since the inception of the electoral bond scheme amounts to Rs 16,492 crores. Out of the overall sum, the Bharatiya Janata Party received about Rs. 8,251 crores through electoral bonds over the years, marking the largest individual share among all parties. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The Electoral Bond scheme was first announced in the 2017-18 budget and the scheme was subsequently notified in January 2018.  Since then, political parties have provided information related to the electoral bonds obtained by them in their annual audit report submitted to the ECI every financial year. Further, following the Supreme Court directions, the ECI has disclosed on its website, the information as of November 2023, related to the electoral bonds received by various parties in a sealed cover.
However, the recent disclosures from the ECI which shared data submitted by the SBI, regarding political parties receiving donations via electoral bonds pertain solely to contributions made from 12 April 2019 to 24 January 2024.  Collating these diverse sources provides a comprehensive understanding of the donations received by political parties since the commencement of the electoral bond scheme. These sources can be found in the table below.
As per data obtained using RTI since the inception of the electoral bonds scheme, the total sum of political donations through the electoral bond scheme amounts to Rs. 16,492 crore as of date. Dataful has aggregated the electoral bonds data acquired through the various methods outlined earlier and also responses received through RTI queries. This data was able to map the parties that received electoral bonds worth Rs 16,488.2 crore. There is a slight discrepancy of around four crores.
The examination of the data indicates that the total donations received through electoral bonds stand at Rs. 16,492 crores and not Rs. 20,000 crores as asserted by Home Minister Amit Shah. Further, out of the overall sum, the Bharatiya Janata Party has amassed Rs. 8,251 crore through electoral bonds over the years, marking the largest individual share (50.04%) among all parties.
This indicates that the BJP has secured a significant portion of political funding, with the remainder of the donations dispersed among other political parties. The detailed breakup of the donations received by various political parties through electoral bonds over the years can be viewed in the below table.
Additionally, the Home Minister contended that aside from the donations received by the BJP, the remaining funds were contributed to opposition parties. A comparable argument was presented in the viral post, taking into account the tally of MPs of the ruling party and opposition. However, it is important to note that not all parties, apart from the BJP, are aligned with the opposition. Some parties were previously in alliance with the BJP, although some have since terminated their alliance. Furthermore, there are also a few parties that maintain an equal distance from both the ruling and opposition alliances.
To sum it up, the BJP received a little more than half the total donations of Rs. 16,492 crore received via electoral bonds.


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The Para-athlete seen in this video represents Italy, not India - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 10, 2022
In the context of recently concluded 2022 Commonwealth Games, a video of a para-athlete winning the race is being widely shared claiming that she belongs to India. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Indian para-athlete winning a gold medal.
Fact: The video shows Italian para-athlete Sabatini Ambra winning gold medal in women’s 100m final at 2020 Tokyo Paralympic games. She doesn’t belong to India. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Firstly, the name of the athlete is clearly visible on the bib of her jersey. It shows her name is ‘SABATINI’. We searched on YouTube with relevant keywords and found the original short video of the competition uploaded on Official YouTube channel of International Paralympic Committee on 16 October 2021. Upon comparing the two videos, it is evident that the viral video is a copied from this video
The title of the video says, “The stages of a race, featuring Ambra Sabatini”. This video also contains the clues mentioned below:
Taking the cue, We searched about her on Wikipedia which says, “Ambra Sabatini (born 19 January 2002) is an Italian Paralympic athlete”
We also found the full video of the event where she won the Gold medal in Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Also, one can see that there is no Indian athlete participating in the final race.
The final results of the event from the Olympic website can be seen here
To sum it up, the para-athlete seen winning the race belongs to Italy, not India


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The book that includes chapters on dating and relationships is not the CBSE Class 9 textbook. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 7, 2024
A post featuring images of pages from a book is widely shared on social media platforms, claiming that CBSE has included chapters on dating and relationships in the Class 9 textbook. Even some popular media organisations like Times Now, India Today, News 18 also reported the same. Through this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: CBSE has included chapters on dating and relationships in the Class 9 textbook.
Fact: CBSE issued a clarification on this viral claim through their official X (Twitter), stating that a section of the media is wrongly attributing the book to be a publication of theirs. The post further clarified that the contents of the chapter are from a book titled ‘A Guide to Self-Awareness and Empowerment,’ published by G Ram Books (P) Ltd. Similarly, G Ram Books (P) Ltd. also clarified through their Twitter post that the book has no connection to CBSE or NCERT; it is published by them. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To check the veracity of the viral claim, we conducted a relevant keyword search on the internet. During this search, we found media reports (here & here) indicating that CBSE had issued a clarification on this viral claim through their official X (Twitter).
Subsequently, we located a clarification post shared on the X account of CBSE, explaining that a section of the media is wrongly attributing the book to be a publication of theirs. The post further clarified that the contents of the chapter are actually from a book titled ‘A Guide to Self-Awareness and Empowerment,’ authored by Gagan Deep Kaur and published by G Ram Books (P) Ltd. CBSE neither publishes any books nor recommends books from any private publishers.
Clarification pic.twitter.com/hNbZdbM5P8
Similarly, we also found a clarification post shared by G. Ram Books (P) Limited on its X (Twitter) page regarding this viral claim. The post mentioned that the book series covers various topics, including the generation gap, regulating emotions, good touch, bad touch, dealing with depression and anxiety, and more. The post further clarified that these books have not been published by CBSE or NCERT. They have been published by us at G. Ram Books (P.) Ltd., thoughtfully and responsibly, for the promotion of positive mental health among school students. From this information, it is evident that the books that include chapters on dating and relationships are published by G. Ram Books (P.) Ltd and are not related to CBSE.
We are grateful for the positive response that our chapter on Dating & Relationships has garnered on social media.
We hope to continue creating more revolutionary educational content for the promotion of positive mental health of students, thoughtfully and responsibly. 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/R4SB4xEvrz
To sum it up, the book that includes chapters on dating and relationships is falsely attributed as a CBSE Class 9 textbook.

created: February 7, 2024


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The boy dancing in this video is not the recently deceased Rajasthan’s Indra Meghwal - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 17, 2022
In the context of recent Rajasthan’s Jalore incident where a nine-year-old boy Indra Meghwal was allegedly beaten to death by a teacher, a video of a small boy dancing to a Rajasthani song is being widely shared on social media claiming that the boy int he video is this nine-year-old Indra Meghwal. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim:  Old dancing video of nine-year-old boy Indra Meghwal who was allegedly beaten to death by a teacher.
Fact: The boy dancing in the video is Harish Bheel, a class-II student at Government Upper Primary school, Gomrakh dham, chohtan block, Barmer district, Rajasthan. He is not Indra Meghwal who was allegedly beaten to death by a teacher. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING
Firstly, we compared the images of the Indra Meghwal with that of boy dancing in the viral video and found that both images are different.
Then, we divided the video into keyframes and conducted the reverse image search. We found an old video on YouTube uploaded by “Jeevraj CTN Barmer” on 04 August 2022. We also identified the song playing in background as a Rajasthani folk song.
Taking the cue from this, we searched with the relevant keywords and found a video on Facebook posted by GUPS Gomrakh dham Taratra, Chohtan, Barmer on 30 July 2022 which says , “No bag day ke दिनकक्षा2 केविद्यार्थीहरीशद्वाराआत्मविश्वाससेभरपूरशानदारप्रस्तुति”. (English translation: On No bag day, a brilliant and confident performance by class 2 student Harish). The viral video is a trimmed version of this video.
The Facebook profile belongs to Government Upper Primary School, Gomrakh dham, Tar Chohtan village, Barmer district, Rajasthan. We further investigated the profile and found the Facebook profiles of the teachers working in the school. Kailash Bhati M, a teacher in the same school, clarified “Brother this is not Indra Kumar Meghwal. This child Harish Bhil is a student at Higher Primary School Gomarkh Dham (Barmer). Please do not share wrong video”
Upon further investigation, we found that India Today contacted the headmaster of the GUPS Gomrakh dham, Chohtan. He clarified that the boy dancing in the video is Harish Bheel, a class II student at Government Upper primary school, Gomrakh dham, chohtan. Indra Meghwal’s father Devaram Meghwal also confirmed to India Today that the boy dancing in the video was not his son.
We found the student details of Harish Bheel from Rajasthan Government’s Jansoochna Portal.
Taking the cue from this, we searched for the contact details of the family in Food department website and found the details & contact number of his father Punja Ram. But at this moment, his number is unreachable. We will update this article when we get the required information.
To sum it up, the boy dancing in the video is not Indra Meghwal, the nine-year-old boy who was allegedly beaten to death by a teacher.


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The boy in the image was injured while cleaning his School's Chemistry laboratory - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 11, 2019
A post with a screenshot is being widely shared on Facebook claiming that in Tamilnadu, the management of a ‘Christian’ school has made a child clean toilets for wearing ‘Ayyappa’ mala and the boy was injured due to spilling of acid during that act. Let’s analyze the authenticity of the claim.
Image of a boy in Tamilnadu, who was made to clean toilets with acid as a punishment for wearing Ayyappa mala.
Fact: The boy in the image was injured due to spilling of acid while cleaning his School’s Chemistry laboratory along with four other students. He was not given punishment for wearing the Ayyappa mala. So, the claim is FALSE.
With the information in that screenshot, when searched on Google with the text ‘Tamilnadu good shepherd school student acid burns’, many search results were obtained. Among them, the search result of ‘TheTimes of India’ had a shorter picture of the second photo in the screenshot. From the article, it was found that the boy in the photo is ‘Maharaja’, a student of ‘Good Shepherd High School (TN)’ and was injured due to spilling of acid while he was cleaning his school’s Chemistry laboratory along with four other students. The students were cleaning the lab as per the instructions of his headmaster.
The same is also known from the ‘The New Indian Express’ article. The boy was not given any punishment for wearing Ayyappa mala.
To conclude, the boy in the image was injured due to spilling of acid while cleaning up his School’s Chemistry laboratory.
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created: December 11, 2019


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The boy in the photo is not Jack Ma. He is Fan Xiaoqin, an 8-year-old look-alike of Jack Ma. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 9, 2019
A photo is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the small boy in the photo is Jack Ma, a billionaire entrepreneur who is the co-founder of the Alibaba group. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The small boy in the photo is Jack Ma.
Fact: The boy in the photo is not Jack Ma. He is Fan Xiaoqin, an 8-year-old look-alike of Jack Ma. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the photo was run through the Google Reverse Image Search, an article published by the ‘Shanghaiist’ with the same image was found in the search results. In the article, it can be read that the boy in the photo is a look-alike of Jack Ma. His name is Fan Xiaoqin. He is also being called as ‘Mini Jack Ma’. On a ‘Getty Images’ page, it can be read that the boy “grows in a poor family as his father has lost a leg, his mother has poliomyelitis and is blind in one eye, and his grandma is Alzheimer’s patient at Yongfeng County in Jiangxi”.
When the videos and photos of Fan went viral previously in 2016, it was reported by various media channels that Jack Ma will fund the education of his 8-year-old look-alike. Some of the Indian media channels also reported the same. But, later, it was found that it is just a rumour. According to an article in the ‘Fortune’, a spokesperson from the Alibaba group has denied the reports. Talking to the ‘Fortune’, the spokesperson said that the news is completely false.
Guess who's the real #JackMa of #Alibaba? The 2nd richest Chinese to fund education of his poor 8-yr-old look-alike https://t.co/iw5mZRJ8bf pic.twitter.com/S61ZTuRlsb
To sum it up, the boy in the photo is not Jack Ma. He is Fan Xiaoqin, an 8-year-old look-alike of Jack Ma.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series?

created: December 9, 2019


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The boy killing the girl in the video is not a Muslim; both of them belong to the same community - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 16, 2022
A video through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that a Hindu girl in Surat was beheaded by a Muslim boy when she refused to convert to Islam. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a Hindu girl in Surat being killed with a knife by a Muslim boy when she refused to convert to Islam.
Fact: The incident in the video took place in Surat, Gujarat. But the boy who killed the woman in the video is not a Muslim. According to Kamrej police officials, both the boy (accused) and the girl (victim) belong to the same community (Gujarati Patel). Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, the same video was found in a Times of India article. The incident in the video took place on 12 February 2022 in Surat (Kamrej area), and the name of the accused is ‘Fenil Goyani’ who was a ‘school-time friend’ of the victim, ‘Grishma Vekariya’. According to the police, the incident is being investigated to know what led to such a situation.
The accused, ‘Fenil Goyani’ after slitting the throat of the victim, ran towards an open plot. After many people gathered, looking at the situation, the man himself slit his own hands. Soon, the police disarmed and detained the accused. The victim’s body and two of her injured relatives were taken to SMIMER hospital for treatment.
The accused, ‘Fenil Goyani’ is not a Muslim. According to ‘Ahmedabad Mirror’, both the victim and accused belong to the same community. When Factly contacted the Kamrej Police Station, the Police confirmed that the boy was not a Muslim and that both the boy and girl belong to the same community (Gujarati Patel).
To sum it up, the boy killing the girl in the video is not a Muslim; both of them belong to the same community.

created: February 16, 2022


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The boy seen in this photo was not caught by the Kannamkulam police in Kerala - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 27, 2022
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it is a picture of a missing boy found by the Kunnamkulam police in Kerala. Alleging that the boy was at the Kunnamkulam police station, this post state the boy’s parents’ names as Aakash and Leena and requested social media users to share the message till the news reach their parents. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of a  missing boy found by the Kunnamkulam police in Kerala.
Fact: Multiple childrens’ photos were circulated on social media with a similar claim since 2017. The Kunnamkulam Police Station Inspector Soorej V C confirmed to Factly that all these photos of missing children linked to the Kunnamkulam police station on social media are fake. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, we could not find any reliable sources related to the photo. But one could find multiple users in the comments section mentioning it as a fake post. Many users in the comments section replied that different pictures were circulated with a similar claim for many years.
On searching for further details using relevant keywords, we found that photos of different children, including the boy’s photo in the post, are being circulated with a similar claim on social media since 2017. They can be seen here, here and here. Sharing the pictures of these missing child photos, many media websites and social media users stated these as fake posts.
In 2017, when another child’s photo was shared with a similar narrative on social media, Deepa Joseph, the Chairperson of the Distress Management Collective, clarified through a Facebook post that the news about a missing child found by the Kunnamkulam police is false information.
For further clarification regarding these missing child photos, we contacted the Kunnamkulam Police station Inspector Soorej V C. While speaking to us, Soorej V C confirmed that all these photos of missing children linked to the Kunnamkulam police station on social media are fake. Though we could not ascertain the details of the boy shown in the post, from all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the boy seen in the photo was not found by the Kunnamkulam police.
To sum it up, the boy seen in this photo was not caught by the Kannamkulam police station in Kerala.

created: September 27, 2022


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The boy’s family members weren’t dead. He wasn’t even migrating alone through the desert - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 19, 2019
On Facebook, a post with a heart-rending picture of a boy,  apparently alone in the desert is being shared by many users claiming- ‘Heart broken photo of 4 years child who is migrating from Syria to Jordan, The UNHCR team caught him when he was migrating alone in the desert. The only thing he had in his shopper was the clothes of his mom & sister who were killed in Syria’. Let’s try to verify the claims made in the post.
The boy’s mother and sister were killed in Syria and he was migrating alone through the desert.
Fact: The boy’s family members weren’t dead. He wasn’t even travelling alone through the desert; he was accompanied by other refugees. He got temporarily separated from his family while migrating from Syria to Jordan and was later united with his mother.  Hence, the post is FALSE.
When the image in the post is run through Google Reverse Image Search technique, it was found in an article published by “BBC News” in 2014. The photo in the post was first tweeted on Twitter by Andrew Harper, head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR in Jordan. In his tweet that enclosed this photo, he wrote, “Here 4 year old Marwan, who was temporarily separated from his family, is assisted by UNHCR staff to cross #Jordan”.
Here 4 year old Marwan, who was temporarily separated from his family, is assisted by UNHCR staff to cross #Jordan pic.twitter.com/w4s2mrNnMY
This photo went viral when CNN International reporter Hala Gorani tweeted it saying “UN staff found 4 year old Marwan crossing desert alone after being separated from family fleeing #Syria”. But on finding the authenticity of the photo, he has deleted his tweet. Below is a screenshot of his tweet that was obtained from the “Times of Israel” article which wrote about the image posted.
Andrew Harper told the BBC that the boy (Marwan) has got temporarily separated from his family at the remote Hagallat crossing and was found by the staff from the UN’s refugee agency. Harper clarified that Marwan was taken by them and was reunited with his mother about 10 minutes after that picture was taken.
Andrew Harper has even made another tweet with the photo that shows Marawan at the back of a group of refugees.
Thanks to Jared 4 this shot showing Marwan at the back of this group of @refugees. He is separated – he is not alone. pic.twitter.com/vq2JpxjT8j
So, the story in the post along with the photograph of the boy is a fabricated one. To sum it up, the boy’s family members weren’t dead. He wasn’t even migrating alone through the desert. He got temporarily separated from his family and later reunited with his mother.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series on Parliament?


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The Bridge in the Viral Video is Not Chenab Rail Bridge, but the Beipan River Bridge in China - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 27, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming to show the trial run of the world’s highest railway track on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link (USBRL) on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir. The video shows a train passing through a railway bridge at a high altitude. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of trial run of the world’s highest railway track on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir conducted on 21 March 2023.
Fact:  The viral video circulating on social media claiming to show the Chenab Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir is actually a video of the Beipanjiang Railway Bridge in Guizhou province, China. Further, on 26 March 2023, the Indian Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw inspected the Chenab Rail Bridge and participated in the Trolley run. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We performed a reverse image search using the keyframes from the viral video and found the same video posted on Facebook on 27 June 2022 identified as the Beipan River Bridge in Guizhou Province of China. Furthermore, it is important to note that the track-laying work on the Chenab Railway Bridge only began in February 2023. Therefore, the video doesn’t show the trial run on the Chenab Bridge.
We conducted a comparison of the viral visuals with other visuals of the Beipanjiang Railway Bridge and found a match. The landscape of the mountains, the reddish-orange arch of the bridge, the river flowing under the bridge, and the pillars of the bridge were consistent with each other. This confirms that the viral video is indeed showing the Beipanjiang Railway Bridge in China, and not the Chenab Railway Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir as claimed.
On 26 March 2023, the Indian Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw inspected the Chenab Rail Bridge and participated in the Trolley run. The Chenab Rail Bridge is a steel and concrete arch bridge that connects Bakkal and Kauri, located just 42 kilometres from the main Reasi town in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. At a height of 359 meters (1,178 feet) above the Chenab River, the bridge is currently the world’s highest rail bridge. The bridge is expected to open to rail traffic by December 2023 or by January/February 2024. Visuals of the Chenab Rail Bridge can be seen here.
To sum it up, the viral video of a train passing through a railway bridge claimed to be the Chenab Railway Bridge is, in fact, the Beipan River Shuibai Railway Bridge in China.


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The bridge in this photo is actually in China, not Mumbai - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 25, 2024
A striking bridge photo (here, here and here) is making its rounds on social media, with the accompanying claim that it is located in Mumbai, India. We fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: The bridge seen in this viral photograph is in Mumbai.
Fact: The bridge in the viral photo is actually known as the Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge and is located in Qingdao, China. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
To ascertain the veracity of the viral claim, we performed a reverse image search. This led us to a video (here, here and here) where the viral photo seems to be a keyframe.
Posts (archive) associated with the video identified the bridge as the ‘Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge.’
Further search for visuals of this bridge led us to news reports (here, here and here) from when the bridge was inaugurated in China in 2011. Reputed news outlets, such as Time and DailyMail (archive), published photos of the ‘Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge.’ These images reveal the same four pillars with a distant single pillar as seen in the viral photo.
Additionally, we examined Google Earth for more evidence to confirm that the bridge in the viral photo is indeed the ‘Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge.’ This revealed a part of the bridge where you can see four pillars and, later, a tall single pillar, similar to the viral image.
Also, we discovered numerous videos of this bridge (here, here, here and here) posted on YouTube. In these videos, you can clearly see the four pillars and the single pillar as shown in the viral image. This evidence confirms that the bridge in the viral photo is indeed the ‘Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge’ and not a bridge from Mumbai.
Moreover, we found no news reports or credible online sources that reported the opening of a bridge in Mumbai that looks like the one in the photo.
To sum up, the bridge depicted in the viral photo is the ‘Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge’ located in China, not in Mumbai, India.


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The bright stars of the Public Education – KVs & JNVs outperform Private Schools - Factly
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 27, 2015
Government schools evoke an image of a failed system. Their performance is always cited as a reason for privatization of the education. But the Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) & the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) stand as an exception and have consistently outperformed their private counterparts. Is it really difficult to scale up and provide similar quality education to all children in the country?
The debate around public funded primary & secondary education often revolves around poor facilities, poor results and a system full of challenges. Privatization of education is often touted as the only alternative left to revive the secondary education setup. But the Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) & Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) stand as the perfect examples of what public funded education can achieve, only if there is little more will. The KVs & JNVs have consistently outperformed private CBSE schools in both 10 & 12 results.
Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) was established in November, 1962 to provide uninterrupted education to the children of the transferable Central Government employees. They follow the CBSE curriculum. As on date, there are 1115 functional schools with 1175595 students. Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of KVs (108) followed by Madhya Pradesh (93), Rajasthan (69), West Bengal (58) & Maharashtra (58).
There is no defined process for the establishment of a KV. It is dealt on a case to case basis. Various categories of students are given admission in KVs. Central government employees including teachers, Central Government Autonomous Body employees, State Government employees and state Government Autonomous body employees & others study in KVs.
Close to 50% of the students in KVs are children of Central Government employees, 15% are children state government employees and the rest 35% are others. MPs can also recommend names for admission to KVs.
On the other hand, Jawahar Navodya Vidyalayas(JNVs) were established with the primary objective to provide good quality modern education to the talented children predominantly from the rural areas, without regard to their family’s socio-economic condition. At present, there are 589 functional residential schools. Admission in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas is made on the basis of selection test which is designed to ensure that talented children from rural areas are able to compete without facing any disadvantage. The idea was to establish one JNV in every district. These schools also follow the CBSE Curriculum and are fully residential co-education schools. There are 589 functional schools at present with more than 2 lakh enrolled students.
Public Schools (Government schools) are infamous for their bad results. In a welcome departure from this tradition, KVs & JNVs have consistently outperformed private schools in both the 10 & 12 Class CBSE results. Though the performance of these schools is only marginally better in 10 results, they are far ahead of their private counter parts in 12 Results.
In class 10 results, KVs & JNVs have consistently achieved a result of more than 99.5% over the last few years. Private schools on the other hand achieved a result of less than 99.5%. The difference here is only marginal.
In class 12 results, KVs & JNVs have consistently achieved a result close to 95% over the last few years. Private schools on the other hand achieved a result marginally higher than 80%. The difference in performance is quite stark and the public schools have a 15% lead over the private schools. In both class 10 & 12 results, the KVs & JNVs have always done better than the CBSE national average.
As Factly reported earlier, about 35% faculty positions are vacant in Government Higher Educational Institutions. The percentage of teacher positions vacant in KVs & JNVs is not as high as the higher educational institutions. While 24.3% Principal positions are vacant in KVs, 15.7% are vacant in JNVs. The corresponding percentage for Teacher vacancies is 17.4% and 18.3% respectively.
Why is that institutions like KVs & JNUs are performing while the entire public funded primary & secondary education is in shambles? The answer probably is to do with both will & scale. The enrollment in Government schools in India is close to 14 crore. In other words, we would need 100 times the present number of KVs & JNVs to cater to that demand. While this is not an easy task, change is possible if both the state & central governments are willing.
But the actions of the central government like withdrawing central support to Model Schools do not exude that confidence. The Model school scheme envisaged setting up of 6000 quality schools across the country with minimum standards of a KV. This is more than 5 times the number of KVs in the country today. The central support to these schools has been withdrawn with effect from financial year 2015-16. The Central Government has transferred the scheme to the States/UTs. How many states will own the scheme as its own is a million dollar question.


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The British did not issue any coin with Lord Rama’s portrait before India’s Independence - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 30, 2022
A photo is being shared on social media claiming that the coins depicting the portrait of lord Rama, Sita and Hanuman were issued during the British regime in India. The photo shows the obverse and reverse view of a purported ‘one anna’ coin issued by the East India Company in 1839. This post claims that before India’s Independence in 1947, the British also used to give respect to lord Rama. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: A photo of a purported coin from 1839 confirms that coins depicting Lord Rama were issued during the British regime before India’s Independence.
Fact: The British Government did not issue coins depicting Lord Rama or any other Hindu gods’ portrait during their rule in India. No such coin depicting Lord Rama’s portrait was issued under the British before India’s Independence. These counterfeit coins depicting Hindu gods were recently manufactured for sale to foreign tourists. These counterfeit coins are available for purchase on different e-commerce websites. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched to check whether the British Government had issued any such coins depicting Lord Rama before India’s Independence, we found the complete collection of coins that were issued during the East India Company and the British regime on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) website. The coins issued under William IV (1830-37) and Queen Victoria’s (1837-1901) regime can be seen here and here. During Victoria’s regime as the Queen of the United Kingdom, the East India Company issued coins valuing one-twelfth anna, quarter anna, half anna and two annas. The ‘one anna’ coins were not in use during Queen Victoria’s regime. All these coins issued during Queen Victoria’s regime bore the portrait of Queen Victoria. The coins issued during the other British King’s reign before India’s Independence can be seen here, here and here. None of these coins issued by the British Government had lord Rama’s portrait on it.
The Government of India’s Archeological Survey of India published a document detailing the history of the coinage of the territories of the East India Company in the Indian peninsula. No such coin depicting Hindu gods portrait was found in the coinage collection pictures shared in the document.
Kingdoms in the South had reference to Gods in the coins issued by them. The Madras presidency in the early 19th century had coins featuring temple gopuram and Vishnu. However, we could not find the exact coin mentioned in the viral post.
The India Today Fact-Check team contacted Sanjib Singh, the spokesperson of the National Museum in Delhi, regarding these coins circulating on social media. Speaking to ‘India Today’, Sanjib Singh said, “East India Company did issue coins in India which were made of Corolina (Gold), Anglina (Silver), Cupproon (Copper) and Tinny (Tin). Across the world, till now there is absolutely no reference of coins with Hindu Gods inscribed on them”.
Several Indian private manufacturing companies are designing similar coins depicting Hindu gods portraits and selling them on different e-commerce websites. According to an article published by the ‘coinquest’ website, the copper coins with the inscription of East India Company, and usually dated on or before 1839 are mostly a ‘spiritually oriented token recently manufactured and sold to tourists.’ “…these pieces are modern, counterfeit coins made to look old and be valuable.”
Earlier, when a similar duplicate coin depicting lord ram was being shared as a purported 1818 coin issued during the Mughal era in India, FACTLY published a fact-check article debunking that claim.
To sum it up, the British did not issue any coins depicting Lord Rama’s portrait before India’s Independence.


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The Buddhist monk in the photo is 114 years old, not 144 years old - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 2, 2019
An image of a monk is being shared on social media with a claim that he is 144 years old. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The Buddhist monk in the photo is 144 years old.
Fact: The monk in the photo is LP Saur Kantiko and he is 114 years old. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image in the post was run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same image was found to be uploaded on Instagram by a user with the username – ‘magie.du.bouddha’. The photo was uploaded on 23 June 2019 and has a description – “Meeting with the very venerable lp saur kantiko (114 years) This Master exudes kindness and spirituality, I was really lucky to be able to come and see him in his temple.” On the website of ‘magie.du.bouddha’, it can be found that the person bowing to the monk is a webmaster who travels and collects the Buddhist magic amulets and objects, which he eventually sells on his website.  The same information can also be found on the Facebook page of ‘magie.du.bouddha’.
To sum it up, the Buddhist monk in the photo is 114 years old, not 144 years old.
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created: August 2, 2019


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The burnt cash does not belong to Karnataka Congress Minister. It’s an artwork. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 9, 2019
A video is being shared on Facebook by many users claiming that a Karnataka Congress Minister tried to burn his black money when raids were conducted at his Delhi house. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The archived version of the post can be found here.
Karnataka Congress Minister D K Shiva Kumar tried to burn his black money when raids were conducted at his Delhi house.
It is an artwork done by a Madrid artist, Alejandro Monge.  Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Using the Invid Software, the video posted on Facebook is divided into frames. When the frames are run through Google Reverse Image Search, a link to another similar video, claiming that notes burnt are Euros, is found in the search results. Under that video, in the comments, a user has given the actual details of the artist, who has done this artwork.  When you search for the artist, it is found that the notes shown in the video are his artwork. He has done this artwork last year in February.
In his Instagram account, he posted all other similar fake claims made on his artwork in different countries (Pakistan, Russia and Japan). Also, in India itself, this video has been shared widely with different claims. So, it can be concluded that the burnt notes shown in the video posted on Facebook are no way related to Karnataka Congress Minister.
Finally, the burnt cash does not belong to Karnataka Congress Minister. It is an artwork.


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The burqa-clad Muslim woman in this video was not denied food rations - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 22, 2020
A video is being shared widely on social media with a claim that a burqa-clad Muslim woman had been denied food rations for being a Muslim. Let’s analyze the claim made in the post.
Video of a burqa-clad Muslim woman being denied a food kit for being a Muslim.
Fact: The woman in the video was not denied food rations. Rajeev Mishra (the man distributing food rations in the video) has sent other video and photos to FACTLY, where it can be seen that the woman was given rations. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In the posted video, at 25 secs, it can be heard that the name of the man distributing food rations is ‘Rajeev Mishra’. So, when searched with his name and other keywords, another Facebook video (posted by ‘UPKhabar’) with more information regarding the man in the video was found.
When searched with the available details, the Facebook profile of ‘Rajeev Mishra’ (President of ‘Mamatha Charitable Trust’ and ‘General Secretary of BJP Uttar Pradesh’) was found. He has posted the same video (a longer version) on his profile on 16 April 2020. Even in that video, the video gets transitioned to another visual when the woman comes to receive the food kit; making people believe that she was denied food rations. When FACTLY contacted Rajeev Mishra for clarification on the video, he denied the false claims and shared another video and photos from the event with FACTLY. In the video and photos, it can be clearly seen that the burqa-clad woman has received food rations.
Also, Rajeev Mishra told FACTLY that they do not discriminate against people based on religion. More videos and photos of him distributing food kits to Muslims can be seen on his Facebook profile.
To sum it up, the burqa-clad Muslim woman in the video was not denied food rations.
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The burqa-clad person who threw a bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore (J&K) is Haseena Akhtar, not Rayees Ahmad Bhat - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 1, 2022
A collage of two pictures is being shared on social media with a claim that the person in a burqa who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore (J&K) is Rayees Ahmad Bhat. He was reportedly killed in an encounter. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: The person in a burqa who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore (J&K) is Rayees Ahmad Bhat.
Fact: The person in a burqa who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore (J&K) is a woman, not a man. While Kashmir Zone Police have tweeted on 30 March 2022 that Rayees Ahmad Bhat was killed in an encounter, IGP Vijay Kumar told the media on 31 March 2022 that they arrested Haseena Akhtar who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
The ID card photo was found to be tweeted by the Kashmir Zone Police on 30 March 2022. They tweeted the photo and wrote – “Killed terrorist (Rayees Ah Bhat) was earlier a journalist & was running online news portal ‘ValleyNews Service’ in Anantnag”. They did not say anywhere that Rayees Ahmad Bhat is the person in a burqa who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore. The news articles regarding the encounter of Rayees Ahmad Bhat can be read here, here, and here.
#SrinagarEncounterUpdate: Killed terrorist (Rayees Ah Bhat) was  earlier a journalist &was running online news portal 'ValleyNews Service' in Anantnag. Joined terrorist ranks in 8/2021 &was categorised 'C' in our list. 02 FIRs are already registered against him for terror crimes. https://t.co/60J86npozf
On 30 March 2022, several media agencies have reported that a bomb was hurled at CRPF bunker by a burqa-clad woman in Sopore. The same day, talking to ‘ANI’, IGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar said – “The woman who hurled a bomb at the CRPF bunker in Sopore yesterday has been identified. She will be arrested soon”. IGP Vijay Kumar told the media on 31 March 2022 that they arrested Haseena Akhtar who threw a petrol bomb at the CRPF camp. So, it was not Rayees Ahmad Bhat who threw the petrol bomb.
To sum it up, the burqa-clad person who threw a bomb at the CRPF camp in Sopore (J&K) is Haseena Akhtar, not Rayees Ahmad Bhat.


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The burqa-clad woman in the photo was arrested in Spain for terrorist activities, not in Australia for wearing a burqa - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 4, 2019
An image of a policeman with a hand-cuffed burqa-clad woman is being shared on Facebook with a claim that the woman was arrested in Australia for wearing a burqa. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The photo shows a police officer arresting a woman in Australia for wearing a burqa.
Fact: The photo was taken in 2015 when the police officers in Spain arrested a woman for her alleged involvement in terrorist activities. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the photo in the post is run through the Yandex Reverse Image Search, a newspaper article with the same image is found in the search results. The photo was taken in 2015 when the police officers in Spain arrested an 18-year old Moroccan woman for allegedly recruiting women to join ISIS.  So, the photo was not taken in Australia and she was not arrested for wearing a burqa.
To sum it up, the burqa-clad woman in the photo was arrested in Spain for terrorist activities, not in Australia for wearing a burqa.
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Electoral Bonds worth more than ₹ 180 crores purchased in November
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 14, 2018
Like in the October cycle, November 2018 also witnessed heavy purchase of electoral bonds. As per data shared by SBI, bonds worth more than ₹ 180 crores were purchased in 8 cities in the ten days of November cycle. As is the case with past cycles, bonds in the denomination of ₹ 10 lakh & ₹ 1 crore accounted for 99.95% of the bonds purchased in terms of value.
The Electoral Bonds were first announced in the 2017-18 budget and the scheme was subsequently notified in January 2018. Factly had earlier written about the bonds, their impact on transparency etc.
Factly had also analysed the data obtained from the State Bank of India (SBI), the authorized bank to issue electoral bonds, about bonds purchased in the first first five cycles (till October 2018) to conclude that there was hardly any demand for electoral bonds of lower denomination. The latest data provided by SBI for the November cycle suggests heavy purchase of electoral bonds. Bonds worth more than ₹ 180 crores were purchased in eight (8) cities in the ten days of November cycle. As with other cycles, bonds in the denomination of ₹ 10 lakh & ₹ 1 crore accounted for 99.95% of the bonds purchased in terms of value, even in the November cycle.
Not a single bond was purchased in 21 cities in November 2018
In November 2018, the electoral bond scheme was made available in 29 SBI branches across India covering almost all the states & UTs.  Among the 29 branches, bonds were purchased only in eight (8) branches. Not a single bond was purchased in the remaining twenty one (21) branches. This was the second month in succession where bonds worth more than ₹ 150 crores were purchased. The increased purchase could be due to general elections to five (5) state assemblies that were held in November & December.
A total of 339 bonds worth ₹ 184.2 crores were purchased in November. More than half the bonds (168) purchased in November were in the denomination of ₹ 1 crore.
More than 80% of the bonds were purchased in Hyderabad & Kolkata
A total of 339 bonds worth ₹ 184.2 crores were purchased in the November cycle, taking the total value of bonds purchased in the four cycles to ₹ 1056.73 crores. In the November cycle, 106 bonds each were purchased in Hyderabad & Kolkata. in Raipur, 49 bonds were purchased followed by 42 in Mumbai.  While assembly general elections were due in five states, only the Hyderabad branch in Telangana saw heavy purchase of the bonds. Surprisingly, the highest number of bonds & the highest amount were purchased from Kolkata where no elections were due. Even though elections were due in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan & Mizoram, not a single bond was purchased in Bhopal, Jaipur & Aizwal in November.
In terms of value, Kolkata was on the top where bonds worth ₹ 97 crores were purchased followed by Hyderabad where bonds worth ₹ 57.4 crores were purchased. Hyderabad & Kolkata accounted for more than 80% worth of the bonds purchased in November.
99.95% of bonds purchased (in terms of value) were in denomination of ₹ 10 lakh & ₹ 1 crore
Data for November 2018 indicates that not a single electoral bond of ₹  1000 and ₹  10000 denomination was purchased, an indication that citizens may not be purchasing these bonds. Out of the 339 bonds purchased in November, 10 were of ₹  1 lakh denomination, 161 were of ₹  10 lakh denomination and the remaining 168 were of  ₹  1 crore denomination.  Together, bonds in the denomination of ₹  10 lakh & ₹  1 crore accounted for 99.95% of the bonds purchased in terms of value. It is highly likely that the Rs 10 lakh & Rs 1 crore denomination are purchased by corporates and not individuals.  There is no concrete information on the type of purchasers since SBI has time & again refused to share such information.
Data from the six cycles of 2018 indicates no demand for lower denomination
Data of electoral bonds purchased in the six cycles of the year 2018 clearly indicates that there is no demand for bonds of lower denomination. In terms of value, bonds of  ₹ 1 crore denomination accounted for  ₹ 950 crores or 89.9% followed by bonds of  ₹ 10 lakh denomination that accounted for  ₹ 105.7 crore or 10%. Together, they accounted for over 99.9% of total value of bonds purchased till date. Even in terms of the number of bonds purchased, 2007 out of the 2134 or 94.1% of the bonds purchased till date are in the denomination of  ₹ 10 lakh and  ₹ 1 crore.

created: December 14, 2018


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The celebration of Eid al-Fitr is falsely linked to consummation of Prophet Muhammad with his minor wife, Aisha - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 5, 2022
A post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the day when Prophet Mohammed consummated with his minor wife, Ayesha, is celebrated as Eid. The post even claims that the one-month fasting done before Eid was in support of Ayesha’s fast which was forced by Mohammed to have sex with him. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: The day when Prophet Mohammed consummated with his minor wife, Ayesha, is celebrated as Eid.
Fact: Eid al-Fitr marks the culmination of the fasting month of Ramzan. Ramzan is the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, observed by Muslims all around the world. It is generally said that Prophet Muhammad received the first vision of the Holy Quran during the month of Ramzan. We could not find any credible evidence linking Aisha’s consummation with Prophet Muhammad to celebration of Eid. Aisha was the third wife of Prophet Muhammad and the daughter of Abu Bakr. It has been reported that Aisha was married to Prophet at the age of six and consummated her marriage when she was nine years old. However, many scholars have disputed this. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
Why is Eid al-Fitr celebrated?
Eid al-Fitr marks the culmination of the fasting month of Ramzan. Ramzan is the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, observed by Muslims all around the world.
“Islamic tradition states that it was during Ramzan, on the “Night of Power” (Laylat al-Qadr)—commemorated on one of the last 10 nights of Ramadan, usually the 27th night—that God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad the Quran, Islam’s holy book, “as a guidance for the people.””
It is generally said that Prophet Muhammad received the first vision of the Holy Quran during the month of Ramzan.
Eid al-Fitr means the ‘Festival of breaking fast’. The date of Eid al-Fitr is decided after the sighting of the crescent moon. Eid al-Fitr is also observed to pay tribute to Allah for bestowing strength and courage during the month-long fasting customs.
Aisha was the third wife of Prophet Muhammad and the daughter of Abu Bakr. It has been reported that Aisha was married to Prophet at the age of six and consummated her marriage when she was nine years old. However, many scholars have disputed this.
However, we could not find any credible evidence linking Aisha’s consummation with Prophet Muhammad to the celebration of Eid.
To sum it up, the celebration of Eid al-Fitr is falsely linked to an alleged consummation of Prophet Muhammad with his minor wife, Aisha.


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The Central Bank of Argentina has not issued new 1000-peso currency notes so far with the photo of Lionel Messi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 5, 2023
A photo is being shared on social media claiming that Argentina’s Government has released new 1000-peso commemorative notes featuring Lionel Messi’s picture and his signature after the FIFA World Cup 2022 victory. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Argentina’s Government released new 1000-peso commemorative notes featuring Lionel Messi’s picture and his signature.
Fact: The image shared in the post is a morphed one. As on date, the Central Bank of Argentina (BCRA) did not release any new 1000-peso commemorative notes featuring Lionel Messi’s picture and his signature. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched to check whether Argentina’s Central Bank (BCRA) has issued new 1000-peso commemorative notes featuring Lionel Messi’s picture and his signature, we could not find any such information on the official website of BCRA.  The BCRA website still displays the 1000-peso currency note featuring Rufous Hornero, the national bird of Argentina.
Lately, a few news websites reported that Argentina’s government is considering putting Lionel Messi on banknotes after Argentina’s World Cup victory. These news websites published articles referring to an article published by the ‘El Financiero’ news website.
Informing about BCRA issuing commemorative coins when Argentina won its first World Cup in 1978, ‘El Financiero’ reported that Argentina’s government is analysing options to commemorate their players for the 2022 FIFA World Cup win, and said capturing Lionel Messi’s face on the thousand-peso bill will be the most preferred option as it is important for officials that the figure begins with a ’10’. But in the following line, ‘El Financiero’ article stated, “And before you think otherwise, this option was ‘jokingly’ proposed by members of the Argentine Central Bank, although the most enthusiastic directors, such as Lisandro Cleri, a fervent supporter of Boca Juniors, and Eduardo Hecker, a follower of Independiente, agreed on that a banknote with this design would awaken the collecting spirit of Argentines.” Responding to fact-checking organization ‘Chequeado’, a BCRA official said, “there is no information about this supposed $ 1000 bill in tribute to Messi.”
To sum it up, the Central Bank of Argentina did not issue new 1000-peso currency notes featuring Lionel Messi’s picture.

created: January 5, 2023


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The central government collects more tax on petrol than most state governments - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 12, 2021
A viral social media post which details the price buildup of per liter petrol, mentions that state governments are collecting way more in the form of taxes than the central government. Through this article, let’s fact-check the veracity of the price buildup.
Claim: State government is collecting more tax than central government on petrol.
Fact: For every liter sale of petrol in the country, the central government receives Rs. 32.31 (cess + central share of BED). Whereas for every liter sale in the state the Telangana, government will receive Rs. 26.78 (State tax + state’s share of BED). Which implies central government tax is more compared to the state. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
As per the latest information available on PPAC (Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell) regarding the price buildup of liter petrol in any HPCL Petrol bunks in Delhi, the price of liter petrol to dealers as of 01 July 2021 was Rs. 39.33 and the dealer commission was Rs. 3.82 per liter. While the central excise duty stands at Rs. 32.90, the state tax, which is 30% in Delhi amounts to Rs. 22.82.
Central Govt Tax:
The central government levies excise duty on petrol in the form of Basic Excise Duty (BED), Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED), Additional Excise Duty (Road & Infrastructure) (AED), and the newly introduced Agriculture & Infrastructure Development Cess (AIDC).
Of these, Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) was introduced by the Finance Act 2002. However, as per the act, the amount of excise duty levied under SAED is levied in the form of surcharge and the amount levied goes to the centre and not distributed to the states. In other words, the amount collected through this Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) is not included in the divisible pool and hance the states would not have any share in it.
Additional Excise Duty (AED) on petrol was introduced by the Finance Act 1998, also known as Road & Infrastructure Cess. The amount collected through additional excise duty under the Finance Act 1998 also goes entirely to the Central Government as it is levied for a pre-determined purpose in the form of Cess. So states will not have any share in AED. Similarly, AED was introduced on diesel through the Finance Act 1999. The states do not have a share even in this.
The Agriculture & Infrastructure Development Cess (AIDC) which was recently introduced in the 2021-22 budget is collected in the form of a cess for a pre-determined purpose (Agricultural Infrastructure) and hence states won’t be entitled to any share in the amount collected in the form of AIDC.
As a result, only the Basic Excise Duty (BED), is included in the divisible pool of which states have a share. The current rate of taxes through these forms can be viewed in the below table.
From the above table, we can infer that the sum of Rs. 31.50, which is collected in the form of  Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED,  Additional Excise Duty (Road & Infrastructure) (AED), and Agriculture & Infrastructure Development Cess (AIDC) per liter petrol are entirely retained by the central government and the states do not have any share in it. On the other hand, the amount Rs. 1.40, which is collected in the form of Basic Excise Duty is the only component that falls under the divisible pool, wherein the states get a share.
The 15th Finance Commission recommended that states should get 41% out of the divisible pool of taxes that the central government collects.  This means the states receive 41% (i.e. Rs. 0.59) of the Rs. 1.40 Basic Excise Duty and the remaining 59% (i.e. Rs. 0.81) will reach the central exchequer. The sum of the total quantum of tax which central government receives per liter petrol is Rs. 32.31 (Rs. 31.5 + Rs. 0.81). This is static and the same for every state. i.e for every liter sale of petrol in the country, the central government receives Rs. 32.31 as central excise duty.
State Govt Tax:
Each state follows its own formula to levy a state tax on the sale of petrol and diesel in their respective states. For example, states like Telangana, Karnataka, Odisha, etc. just levy VAT on petrol & diesel, whereas few states collect cess, fixed charges, additional charges along with the VAT.
As far as Telangana is concerned, the state government levies 35.20% VAT on liter petrol. According to the price buildup mentioned at the beginning of the article, Telangana state’s 35.20% VAT would amount to Rs. 26.77. In addition to this, the state government would receive its share from the divisible pool of central taxes. In this case, the state government receives its share out of the basic excise duty.
As per the 15Finance Commission recommendations, states would receive 41% out of the divisible pool. However, each state does not receive 41%, but they receive their respective proportion out of the 41% as recommended by the Finance commission. The commission has recommended 2.13% as Telangana’s share, which means Telangana government would receive 2.13% of Rs. 0.59, which amounts to Rs. 0.01 (one paisa) on liter petrol as their share of basic excise duty. This sums up the total quantum of tax which the state government receives on per liter petrol to Rs. 26.78 (Rs. 26.77 + Rs. 0.01).
To sum it up, the central government collects more tax on petrol than the state government.


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The central government did not make an announcement of depositing 15,000 rupees in every account - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 11, 2023
A video claiming that the central government is going to deposit 15,000 rupees in every account is being shared on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: The Government of India is going to deposit 15 thousand rupees in every account
Fact: Though the video claims that the central government is going to deposit 15 thousand rupees in every account, it does not give any credible information regarding the same. In fact, the video largely talks about the existing schemes in different states. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
The video mentions that women in the age group of 15 to 35 years are going to receive 4,000 rupees in their accounts and later says that the central government is going to put restrictions on three things in the next two days. However, the video does not give any credible information regarding the same. In fact, it talks about existing schemes.
The video goes on to mention that the ration card holders in Maharashtra are going to get a ration kit that includes 6 items this year instead of four. It also mentions that labour card holders can avail 3500 rupees from the government for purchasing bicycles. We could not find any authentic sources mentioning such a scheme. Later, the video mentions that gas cylinders can be availed at 450 rupees in Madhya Pradesh (here and here). Finally, the video claims that the central government is going to increase the Kisan Samman Nidhi yojana fund from 6000 Rupees to 8000 Rupees. However, we found no such announcement made by the central government from the latest press release as on date.
To sum up, the central government did not make an announcement of depositing 15,000 rupees in every account.

created: October 11, 2023


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The Central Government does not pay rents of MPs private houses, it allots houses to MPs - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 10, 2019
A photo of a building is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the Central Government is paying a monthly rent of Rs. 2 lakhs for Chidambaram’s rented flat in that building, since 2014. It is also being claimed that the house owners are Nalini and Karti Chidambaram (P Chidambaram’ wife and son). Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Since 2014, the Central Government is paying a monthly rent of Rs. 2 lakhs for Chidambaram’s rented flat, which is owned by his wife and son (Nalini and Karti Chidambaram).
Fact: The Central Government allots houses to Rajya Sabha MPs. It does not pay rent for private houses. If a MP is living in a private house, other than the allotted house, he has to pay his rent. The house in the photo is reportedly owned by Nalini and Karti Chidambaram in Jor Bagh area (Delhi). If Chidambaram is paying rent for living in that flat, then it is his own money. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the posted image was run through Google Reverse Image Search, it was found that the house is located in Delhi’s Jor Bagh area and is jointly owned by Nalini and Karti Chidambaram. A person tweeted the same photo and wrote that while Chidambaram is getting arrested at Jor Bagh, Dr. Singhvi is watching from inside the house. The full photo of the house can be found in ‘News18’ article.
On the ‘PGurus’ website, it was found that Chidambaram is staying in that house (owned by his wife and son) since 2014 and is paying a monthly rent of Rs. 2 lakhs. But, nothing was mentioned on that website about Central Government paying the monthly rent.
Rajya Sabha MPs are allotted houses by the Central Government. The Central Government does not pay rents to the private houses if an MP chooses to reside in a private house.  Chidambaram was elected as a Rajya Sabha MP in 2016. On the Rajya Sabha website, the address of the house allotted to him can be found. So, the Central Government does not pay to his privately rented house in Jor Bagh.
The procedure for house allotment to Rajya Sabha MPs can be read here and the form to be filled by MPs for the house allotment can be seen here
To sum it up, the Central Government does not pay rents to MPs private houses, it allots houses to MPs.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series on Indian Rivers?

created: September 10, 2019


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The Central Government spent close to Rs 10000 crore on Publicity in the last 16 years
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 4, 2018
Government spending on publicity is nothing new. But in recent past, the amount spent on publicity has increased multifold. In the last 16 years from 2002-03 to 2017-18, the years for which data is available, Government of India spent close to Rs 10000 crore. Since 2013-14, the last year of the UPA government, at least Rs 1000 crore is being spent on publicity every year.
The publicity blitzkrieg of any government just before any elections is a well known fact. Tax payer money is used to publicize government’s achievements, schemes and what not. Quite often, this is one area where the government spends more than the allocated budget. And also, this is one area where austerity is not heard of. As per data shared by ‘The Directorate of Advertising & Visual Publicity (DAVP)’, under the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB), the central government spent close to Rs 10000 crore on all kinds of publicity in the 16 year period from 2002-03 to 2017-18 (up to 09th March 2018).
What is DAVP?
The Directorate of Advertising & Visual Publicity (DAVP) is the nodal agency that takes care of multi-media advertising and publicity for various Ministries and Departments of Government of India. Some Autonomous Bodies also route their advertisements through DAVP. The DAVP is under the administrative control of the MIB. DAVP majorly uses the following channels for communication
The information on publicity expenditure was provided by DAVP in response to an application filed under RTI.
What is the total amount spent on Publicity?
The Central Government spent close to Rs 10000 crore in 16 years from 2002-03 to 2017-18. This includes 10 years of the UPA rule and six years of the NDA. As per DAVP, the data is available only from 2002-03.
As can be seen from the graph, the amount spent on publicity has increased every year except in 2006-07, 2011-12 and 2014-15. It is also interesting to note that the publicity expenditure during election years is substantially more than the normal. For instance, the amount spent from 2004-05 to 2007-08 (4 years) is equal to the amount spent in just two years (2008-09 & 2009-10). Same is the case with 2013-14 & 2014-15. On average, the publicity expenditure in an election year was 40% more than the preceding year. The overall publicity expenditure has been at least Rs 1000 crore in each of the years starting 2013-14.
What about UPA Vs NDA?
The UPA spent about an average of Rs 504 crore per year on publicity during its 10 year rule. The NDA headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee spent only Rs 47 crore per year on average. It has to be noted that the data is available only from the year 2002-03. The NDA government led by Narendra Modi spent 993 crore rupees in its first year and spent more than Rs 1000 crore every following year. The average amount spent during UPA’s first term was Rs 312 crore per year. This amount more than doubled during their second term where it spent an average of Rs 696 crore per year. The Narendra Modi led government spent a total of Rs 4806 crore since 2014-15 till 09th March 2018, an average of Rs 1202 crore per year.
What is this money spent on?
As expected, bulk of this amount is spent on print advertisements. Close to 43% of the total amount (Rs 4272 crore rupees) was spent on Print Media, 34.5% (Rs 3431 crore) on audio-visual while the rest of the 8% (Rs 786  crore) on Printed & Outdoor Publicity. Starting 2013-14, there has been a significant shift with a greater amount being spent on audio-visual than on print advertisements. In 2016-17, amount spent on audio-visual was Rs 140 crore more than the amount spent on print advertisements.
While those at the helm of affairs always advocate decrease in government expenditure & practicing austerity, this seems to be the only area that is an exception to any such rule. More & more money is being spent on publicity by successive governments.


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The CIC is admitting less than 10% of the cases it did in January this year. Is there something fishy?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 22, 2015
The Central Information Commission is in the news for all the wrong reasons, on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the RTI act. After the fiasco about inviting people from the civil society to the annual convention, it now seems that the CIC is rejecting/returning a large number (about 90%) of appeals/complaints based on flimsy technical grounds.
On the eve of the 10 anniversary of the implementation of the RTI act, the Central Information Commission (CIC) is in the news for all the wrong reasons. First, it was in the news for the mismanagement of invitees to the annual convention. Now, there is more than credible evidence to prove that it is rejecting a large number of appeals/complaints on flimsy technical grounds. There is a also an online petition signed by more than 2000 people seeking greater transparency from the CIC on the rejected cases. Former Central Information Commissioner, Shailesh Gandhi even wrote an open letter on this issue to Mr. Vijay Sharma, the current Chief Information Commissioner, which went unanswered.
Drastic Reduction in the Number of Appeals/Complaints admitted
As per the data available on the CIC website, a total of 17863 appeals/complaints were admitted from January to September this year. While this might not look unusual, a closer look at the number of appeals/complaints admitted each month reveals a downward trend. In the first six months of this year, an average more than 2500 appeals/complaints were admitted, while the average has come down to 800 in the next 3 months. Only 448 were admitted in August while this number further came down to 118 in September. Even in Ocotber, only 187 appeals have beem admitted till date.
This downward trend is unusual
The CIC does not reveal information about the total number of  appeals received,  the number of appeals admitted and number of appeals rejected without admission. This downward trend in the last 2-3 months is unusual for the simple reason that such a trend was never observed in the earlier years. There are strong reasons to believe that the CIC registry is now rejecting/returning appeals on flimsy technical grounds, effectively admitting only a handful. A conservative estimate indicates that more than 90% of the appeals received are being rejected on these flimsy grounds.
The CIC is least transparent
RTI Activist Commodore Lokesh Batra filed an application with the CIC asking for total number of cases received and total number of cases returned to the applicants. To his utter surprise, the CIC said it does not maintain such numbers. Such a response from the CIC adds credence to the argument that the CIC is trying to hide something.
Is the CIC insisting on Identity (ID) Proof?
It now seems that the CIC is insisting on submission of an identity proof along with an appeal/complaint, and this seems to be the reason for a large number of rejections. In the checklist for admission of an appeal/complaint, the CIC is asking for an ID proof of the appellant. The check list goes onto say that this is as per the order of the Punjab & Haryana High Court’s order in CWP No. 4787/2011.
The Rules do not mention ID Proof
It does seem that this insistence on the ID proof is the reason for a large number of cases being rejected. This is because a large number of appellants are not aware of this provision that an appeal has to be accompanied with an ID Proof. According to the rules notified in 2012, there is no need for an appellant to submit an ID proof along with the appeal. This was again  reiterated by the government in July this year.
Wrong Interpretation of the High Court Judgment
It does seem that the CIC has wrongly interpreted the order of the High Court. The Chief Information Commissioner of the Punjab State Information Commission (SIC) was the party to the Punjab & Haryana High Court order referred to in the check list. According to RTI activist C J Karira, there are multiple reasons to believe that the CIC has wrongly interpreted the High Court order and that it was no way concerned with the order. He said,
What is the way forward?
The CIC is acting in the least transparent manner possible and it does not bode well for the future of the transparency legislation. It should immediately put all the data in the public domain and stop rejecting appeals based on flimsy technical grounds that appellants have not submitted their ID proof.

created: October 22, 2015


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The CEO of Gujarat did not give any demonstration to show EVM malfunction - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 24, 2024
Several posts (here, here, & here), accompanied by a video of a group of people demonstrating Electronic Voting Machine (EVMs), are being widely shared across social media platforms with the claim that the video shows a live demonstration conducted by the Chief Electoral Officer of Gujarat (CEO) to illustrate the malfunctioning of EVMs. In this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Gujarat conducted a live demonstration illustrating the malfunctioning of EVMs.
Fact: There are no reports indicating that the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Gujarat has conducted a live demonstration illustrating the malfunctioning of EVMs. Moreover, the current CEO of Gujarat is P. Bharathi, IAS.  Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the accuracy of the viral claim, we conducted a keyword search on the internet. However, we did not find any reports indicating that the Gujarat CEO has conducted a live demonstration illustrating the malfunctioning of EVMs. If such a demonstration was indeed conducted by the CEO of Gujarat, it would likely have been reported by several media outlets.
Furthermore, we checked the website of Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Gujarat and found that the current CEO of Gujarat is P. Bharathi, IAS. But the person demonstrating in the video is a man.
When we observe the viral video, we notice an organization named ‘EVM Hatao Morcha’ on the banner. Several organizations (here, here, here) are fighting against the usage of EVMs in elections and are demanding the use of the ballot paper system instead. These organizations conduct demonstrations to showcase that EVMs can be made to malfunction. A few other demonstrations by such organizations can be seen here, here, and here.
The individual featured in the viral video demonstrating the malfunctioning of the EVM can also be seen in another demonstration organized by an organization called the ‘EVM Hatao, Desh Bachao Movement,’ held in February 2024 in Goa. This demonstration video (archive link) was uploaded to the YouTube channel named ‘Prime Media Goa’ on 02 February 2024. After comparing the viral video with this video, it is evident that both individuals giving the EVM demonstration are the same.
When similar videos claiming that EVMs can be hacked went viral on social media, the Election Commission of India refuted such claims through a post on its official X (Twitter) account. The post stated that the EVM shown in the video is not an ECI EVM. Similarly, the CEO of Gujarat also refuted such claims on X (Twitter).
➡False Claim: A person in a video posted on a YT Channel is claiming that EVM can be hacked.
➡Reality: Claim is blatantly wrong & #EVM shown is not #ECI EVMs. EVM in video is #Fake. ECI EVM cannot be hacked or manipulated. For more details on EVM👇https://t.co/5rZAFtOpJK pic.twitter.com/pycwis2hbl
To sum up, the CEO of Gujarat did not give any demonstration to show EVM malfunctions; the viral video shows a demonstration by an organization fighting against the usage of EVMs in the elections.


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As per NASA, the chances of Asteroid Bennu colliding with the Earth between 2175-2199 are 1 in 2700 - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 13, 2022
A post is being shared on social media, which claims that NASA has issued a big warning about an alleged collision of Asteroid Bennu and the Earth. According to the viral post, this asteroid will hit the Earth in the year 2175. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: An asteroid known as Bennu will collide with the Earth in the year 2175.
Fact: NASA discovered asteroid Bennu in 1999, and according to them, there is a slight chance of it colliding with the Earth. The chance of Bennu impacting the Earth between 2175 and 2199 is only 1 in 2700. They never declared that Bennu would surely be colliding with Earth in 2175. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
We looked for details about the Asteroid Bennu on the internet. This led us to an article published by NASA on their website. In the article titled ‘Ten Things to Know About Bennu’, NASA said, ‘
There is a small chance that Bennu will impact earth late in the next century.‘ According to them, the chance of this Near Earth Object impacting the Earth between 2175-2199 is 1 in 2700. They never said it would collide with Earth in the year 2175.
To know more details about the asteroid Bennu like how NASA is collecting Bennu’s surface samples, and to have a video tour of the asteroid, you can click here and here.
To sum it up, the post falsely claims that Asteroid Bennu will collide with the Earth in 2175.  According to NASA, the chances of this happening are 1 in 2700.

created: December 13, 2022


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The child in the image died in August 2018 after a doctor administered a wrong injection to him - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 26, 2019
On Facebook, many users are sharing an image that has a photo of a crying man and a woman while holding an unconscious child. The post also has an accompanying message in Hindi whose English translation is- ‘This poor kid is suffering from cancer. Please provide financial assistance. May God shall not give this agony to your kids.1 Like- Re.1; 1 Comment- Rs 10; 1 Share- Rs 100’. Let’s try to check the claim made in the post.
Image of a cancer-affected child fighting for his survival.
Fact: The child in the image is Aryan Kumar. He died in August 2018 after a doctor administered a wrong injection to him. So, the claim is FALSE.
The post first appeared on Facebook, on November 16, 2019, seeking financial assistance for a boy (in the image) purportedly suffering from cancer.
When the image in the post is cropped and subjected to Google Reverse Image search technique, a link of a news website ‘Janjwar’ was obtained in the search results. From the article, it was found that the child in the image is Aryan Kumar and he died in August 2018 after a doctor in a clinic at Siwan (Bihar) administered a wrong injection to him when he was brought for the treatment of his illness.
The information in another news report with the same image also corroborates that the child had died in August 2018. In both the articles, it wasn’t mentioned if the boy suffered from cancer or not. FACTLY also couldn’t independently verify if the boy was suffering from cancer before his death, but it could be ascertained that the boy isn’t alive now and had died in August 2018.
Also, when we tried to find out if Facebook gives money for the treatment of sick children when posts with their photos are liked or shared, answers by the Facebook team in the ‘Help section’ of the platform were found. In these responses, the company has clarified that it doesn’t provide any such thing and these responses can be seen here and here.
To conclude, the child in the image had died in August 2018 after a doctor administered a wrong injection to him.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series?

created: November 26, 2019


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The child in this old photo is neither APJ Abdul Kalam nor Narendra Modi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 2, 2021
A photo is being shared widely on social media with a claim that it shows former President APJ Abdul Kalam with his mother. Previously, the same picture has also been shared as a childhood photo of PM Modi. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Childhood photo of former President APJ Abdul Kalam with his mother.
Fact: The child in the photo is not Abdul Kalam. He is Sridhar Maryala from the state of Telangana. The uncropped version of the photo shows Maryala’s family. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched about the posted photo,  we found a 2019 Facebook post by a Telugu page ‘Open Mind’.  In the post, it is written that the photo shows the family of a Facebook user – ‘Maryala Srinivas’. On looking at the Facebook profile of Maryala Srinivas, it was found that he posted an uncropped version of the photo in 2020, and clarified that the photo shows his family (his parents and siblings). He clarified that the boy beside his mother in the photo is neither Kalam nor Modi but his brother – Sridhar Maryala. He has also posted the same photo in 2011.
In some of the photos and videos posted by Maryala Srinivas and Sridhar Maryala on their Facebook accounts, the old photos of their mother can be found. The woman in those old photos very much resembles the woman in the viral photo.
To sum it up, the child in the posted photo is neither Abdul Kalam nor Narendra Modi. The posted photo is a cropped version of Maryala’s family photo.


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The children in the photo have already been handed over to their families by the Prayagraj police (UP) - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 9, 2019
A post with a photo is being widely shared on Facebook claiming that it shows children found missing on a Mumbai train. The post was first found on Facebook on August 8, 2019.  Let’s try to analyze the authenticity of the claim made in the post.
Image of children found missing on a Mumbai train.
Fact: The case is related to Prayagraj city (UP) and the children have  already been handed over to their families by the local police So, the claim is FALSE.
The post was first found on Facebook in August 2019 and is being shared widely on Facebook even now.
When the image in the post was subjected to Yandex reverse image search technique, a similar photo was obtained in the search results. The photo is a part of a tweet made in July 2019. In the tweet, the user sought clarification from the Agra Police regarding the image when it went viral with another claim (‘missing children found and are at Agra police station’). Then, ‘Agra Police’ replied that the case is related to Prayagraj and the children have already been handed over to their families by the local police.
उक्त प्रकरण जनपद प्रयागराज से संबंधित है एवं बच्चों को सकुशल स्थानीय पुलिस की मदद से उनके परिजनों को सुपुर्द कर दिया गया है।
To conclude, the children in the image have already been handed over to their families by the Prayagraj police (UP).
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series?


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The ‘Circle-wise sanctioned strength’ numbers are misinterpreted as the India Post’s notification for over 1 lakh vacancies - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 17, 2022
A post is being shared on social media with a claim that the ‘India Post’ (Department of Posts, Ministry of Communication) has recently released a notification for over 1 lakh vacancies. Several media agencies like ‘News18’ (archived), ‘DNA’ (archived), and ‘India.com’ (archived) have also reported the same. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: ‘India Post’ has recently released a notification for over 1 lakh vacancies.
Fact: ‘India Post’ has recently not released any notification for over 1 lakh vacancies. The ‘Circle-wise sanctioned strength Postman, Mailguard & MTS’ numbers (in the ‘Sanctioned strength of posts in various cadres in the Department as on 01.08.2O22’ document of the Department of Posts) are misinterpreted as the number of vacancies. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for the viral vacancy document, no such recent job notification (with over 1 lakh vacancies) was found on the ‘India Post’ website. Some news articles have a screenshot of the alleged vacancy notification. So, when we searched with some keywords from that screenshot, it was found to be part of a document (‘Sanctioned strength of posts in various cadres in the Department as on 01.08.2022’) recently uploaded on the ‘Employee Corner’ website of India Post, not on the ‘Recruitments’ page.
In the document, it can be seen that the given numbers represent the ‘Circle-wise sanctioned strength Postman, Mailguard & MTS’, not the number of vacancies. The numbers related to the sanctioned strength of many other posts can be also seen in that document. The document neither mentioned anywhere that the numbers represent vacancies nor the details of the job application. If it was a job notification, many other details regarding application dates, eligibility, exam centers, etc. would have been part of that document but there were none.
In the 2021-22 Annual Report of India Post, it can be read that the personnel strength of Group C “MTS” is 23,728 (as on 31 March 2021). However, in the viral post, it can be seen that the alleged MTS vacancies are 37,539. It is very unlikely to have vacancies more than the existing personnel strength in any job notification. We have also written to the officials of ‘India Post’ for clarification. This article will be updated if we receive any response from them.
To sum it up, the ‘Circle-wise sanctioned strength’ numbers are misinterpreted as the India Post’s notification for over 1 lakh vacancies.


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The Claim that a woman gave birth to a snake in India is a hoax - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 10, 2023
Several videos (here, here & here) are being shared on social media claiming that a woman has recently given birth to a snake in India. Social media users who are sharing these videos assert different locations for the incident, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and others. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of a Woman giving birth to a snake in India
Fact: Scientifically, it is impossible for humans to give birth to snakes, and there have been no reported cases of such occurrences anywhere in the world. Furthermore, the ultrasound scan image, which appears to show a snake inside a woman’s womb, has been manipulated. Additionally, the visuals of the doctors in the operating theatre are from Pakistan and do not depict any instance of a woman giving birth to a snake. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Extensive research using relevant keywords on the internet has yielded no substantiated reports or verifiable evidence of a woman giving birth to a snake in India. Humans and snakes belong to different biological classifications with distinct reproductive systems. Humans are mammals, giving birth to live young, while snakes are reptiles that mostly lay eggs. The genetic makeup, anatomical structures, and reproductive processes of humans and snakes are fundamentally different. In addition to these biological reasons, there is also the fact that there is no evidence that any human woman has ever given birth to a snake/other species. All the cases that have been reported have been either hoaxes or cases of mistaken identity.
Regarding the visuals depicted in the viral videos, previously an image of an Ultrasound scan report allegedly showing a snake-like creature allegedly in a woman’s womb went viral. The claim associated with this image suggests that Dr. Shailendra Jain from Etah, Uttar Pradesh, refused to treat a pregnant woman upon discovering a snake in her womb. However, in an interview with Amar Ujala, Dr. Shailendra Jain clarified that no such case has ever been encountered, and he deemed the photo and accompanying story entirely fabricated and false.
Furthermore, it is worth noting that the visuals depicting doctors performing surgery are actually from a Pakistani hospital. The video was uploaded by an individual named Ehtisham in April 2023 on Tik Tok, and it does not show a woman giving birth to a snake, contrary to the claim being made. We also contacted both the uploader and the hospital to gather additional information regarding the nature of the surgery featured in the video. This article will be promptly updated accordingly, If and when the necessary information becomes available.
Similarly, claims of a snake being present inside a woman’s womb and being discovered through an X-ray have circulated extensively in the past worldwide, only to be revealed as hoaxes.
To sum it up, it is scientifically impossible for humans to give birth to snakes. Therefore, the rumours claiming that a woman in India has given birth to a snake are entirely false and can be classified as a hoax.