Union Information & Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur stated in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that the fact-check division of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) had uncovered more than 1,100 instances of fake news so far. Since its start, the PIB, according to him, has responded to over 37,000 complaints.
Kerala Congress MPs K Muraleedharan and Benny Behanan questioned Thakur about fake news and whether the government has noticed an increase in fake news cases as evidenced by the statistics released by the NCRB.
Thakur’s remark was in response to their query. According to the minister, the government has institutional and statutory measures in place to combat fake news, and in cases of infringement, the Press Council and the government both take the necessary action.
“A fact-check unit set up under the PIB in November 2019 takes cognizance of fake news relating to Centre both suo-motu and by way of queries sent by citizens and responds to queries with correct information,” Thakur said.
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