There have been a significant rise in wildfire cases in #Uttarakhand. At least 62 incidences have been recorded in the state and #Kumaon region alone has witnessed the maximum number of incidences – 16. #Garhwal also registered 9 incidences.
A Times of India report quoted Uttrakhand’s forest department saying that nearly 51.34 hectares of land has been affected, causing economic loss worth Rs.1.32 lakh. Two deaths have also been reported. Uttarakhand CM #TrivendraRawat also tweeted about the fake social media and requested people to not believe in such fake information.
“A misleading propaganda using old pics of forest fires 2016& 2019 & that of forest fires in Chilean & Chinese forests raging on Social Media,” he tweeted. The situation is exaggerated due to the fake and old images shared on Twitter which created panic in the society and it can even worsen the situation. Sometimes, such wrong information may hinder the functioning of the government to take preventive measures.
Meanwhile, Twitter was flooded with various hashtags such as #PrayForUttarakhand and #SaveTheHimalyas. Bollywood stars like #RandeepHooda and #BhumiPadnekar raised awareness about the disaster. IPS officer Ashok Kumar said in a video, that he posted on social media, that several images and videos doing the rounds online have been taken from foreign forest fires or the 2016 wildfires in Uttrakhand and are being circulated as footage from the current wildfire. He added that some people are even trying to collect money in the name of fires, using these fake images and videos.
Ashok asserted that the administration will file FIRs, and even arrest people if this continues.