Sudhir Chaudhary airs misleading footage on Doordarshan debut show ‘decode’
New Delhi: On his debut show for state-run broadcaster Doordarshan, senior anchor Sudhir Chaudhary aired unrelated and outdated videos, falsely claiming they showed Indian air defence systems thwarting Pakistani attacks. The show, titled Decode, premiered on DD News at 9 PM on 15 May 2025.
Around the 15:25-minute mark of the episode, Chaudhary presented visuals of missile strikes, stating that India’s armed forces had cornered Pakistan. However, Alt News found that the footage was from an Iranian missile strike on Israel’s Nevatim airbase in October 2024. The same video was uploaded by DD India on YouTube on 2 October 2024, captioned as an Iranian attack on the Negev Desert airbase.
Later in the show, at the 26:48-minute mark, Chaudhary claimed that Pakistan had attacked Indian cities and airbases, but these attacks were foiled by Indian air defence systems, including the indigenous “Akashteer.” During this narration, visuals of an aerial combat over a night sky were shown. This video, too, has no connection to the India-Pakistan conflict. It had previously gone viral during the conflict and was fact-checked by Alt News as a 2021 video of Israel’s Iron Dome system.
Interestingly, the version of the Decode episode now available on YouTube has this portion edited out. The clip now starts with Chaudhary saying, “जैसे-जैसे समय बढ़ रहा है, इस युद्ध की नई-नई डिटेल्स सामने आ रहा है… मेड इन इंडिया है, और इसका नाम है आकाशतीर,” indicating that the previous claims and visuals were removed. However, a social media user who recorded the original telecast on her TV shared the unedited clip, confirming the misleading segment.
Sudhir Chaudhary’s debut on DD News comes after Prasar Bharati signed a reported ₹15-crore annual contract with him for the weekday show. His previous stint with Aaj Tak had also begun with a misquote falsely attributed to Mark Twain, which Alt News debunked.
Over the years, Chaudhary has faced several fact-checks by Alt News, including for falsely accusing MP Mahua Moitra of plagiarism, misreporting on the Kathua case, spreading communal narratives like “jihad” charts, and misrepresenting farmers' protest leaders. In February 2025, the NBDSA had also asked Aaj Tak to remove an entire episode of Black & White anchored by Chaudhary over content that violated LGBTQIA+ dignity.
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CM Siddaramaiah warns of possible rainfall dip, stresses uninterrupted drinking water supply
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said there is a possibility of a five per cent decrease in rainfall this year and asked officials to ensure that drinking water supply is not affected.
The CM gave these instructions at a meeting of additional chief secretaries, principal secretaries, and secretaries of all departments held at Vidhana Soudha.
“There is a possibility of a five per cent decrease in rainfall this year. District in-charge secretaries should constantly monitor the drinking water situation in their districts. Meetings should be held with deputy commissioners and zilla panchayat chief executive officers in this regard,” Siddaramaiah said.
“It is the responsibility of the respective secretaries to resolve the problems of the districts under their jurisdiction. Drinking water supply should not be affected for any reason,” his office quoted him as saying in a statement.
Pointing out that B R Ambedkar had warned against officials appeasing politicians, as it could lead to dictatorship, the CM asked officials to work within the framework of the law.
“Give suggestions to ministers within the scope of the law. Bringing a good name to the government depends on the work of the secretaries,” he said, adding that the administration should be made more agile.
Siddaramaiah said the role of departmental secretaries is crucial for the proper functioning of the state administration, as recognised in the Constitution. “It is the duty of all secretaries to act in accordance with the Constitution. They should not do anything against it,” he said.
Referring to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first Home Minister, Siddaramaiah said Patel had emphasised in the constituent assembly that secretaries should fearlessly and independently convey their views to ministers and not hesitate to speak the truth, even if it displeases them.
He urged senior officials to express their opinions fearlessly, independently, and truthfully.
The CM said implementing budget announcements is the responsibility of officials, noting that 15 announcements from last year’s budget are yet to be implemented. “Who is responsible for this?” he asked.
The government made a total of 565 announcements in this year’s budget, including 218 new ones, he said, adding, “It is the responsibility of officials to implement all budget announcements within the same year. They should not remain unimplemented for any reason. Bring any practical difficulties in implementation directly to my notice or that of the chief secretary.”
Out of the announcements in the 2026-27 budget, government orders have been issued for only five, he said.
“All government orders should be implemented, and execution should begin by May; otherwise, the respective secretaries will be held responsible.”
Siddaramaiah said delays in addressing public grievances could erode people’s trust in the government.
“This should not be allowed. Similarly, applications received under Sakala (a government initiative to guarantee services to citizens within a stipulated time) should be disposed of on time.”
Stating that immediate steps should be taken to fill vacant sanctioned posts, he said the finance department has approved the filling of 24,300 posts.
“There are 32,132 posts pending in cadres related to Kalyana Karnataka, and the recruitment process has not yet begun. The revision of cadre and recruitment rules is pending in some departments and should be completed at the earliest,” he said.
Under various centrally sponsored programmes, the state government released its share of Rs 22,768 crore in 2025–26, while the Centre released Rs 16,729 crore. Siddaramaiah said Rs 11,367 crore is still pending from the Centre.
He also directed officials to ensure that grants are utilised within the stipulated period.
Highlighting that contracts worth up to Rs 2 crore have been reserved for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe contractors, the chief minister said such reservations should not be bypassed by bundling works into larger packages.
“All works should be completed within the stipulated time. Construction costs should not escalate due to delays,” he added.
The chief minister also launched the new “Karnataka Progress Portal” and a handbook related to monitoring schemes, approvals, and inter-departmental coordination.
