Dakshina Kannada district Corona Warriors to fight fake news
Mangaluru: A group of netizens in Dakshina Kannada district has formed an anti-fake news team during the coronavirus outbreak, calling themselves DK Corona Warriors.
The team comprises 483 volunteers registered with the department of information and public relations in response to an appeal by the state government.
The citizens' group has people from all walks of life representing the diversity of DK district, a release here said.
The primary mandate for the Corona Warriors is to fight fake news and broadcast authentic, helpful information to citizens of the district during the lockdown period.
They are involved in daily reporting of lockdown status, issues in their neighbourhoods and spreading the message of social distancing and usage of masks.
The group is also committed to supporting the district administration in relief works and emergency situations.
The warriors are organised into nine taluk groups. The broadcast messages are curated by a core group of four, assisted by an investigation and technology team of 18 people.
The group has broadcast 81 messages between March 31 and April 6 which includes 25 fake alerts. Of these, six were local fake news investigated and busted by the team.
Every time a group member reports a piece of suspicious, fake or inflammatory news, the core team takes it up for investigation.
If the probe teams findings are conclusive, a fake news alert is prepared (often in both Kannada and English) which is shared in the taluk groups.
Apart from the focus on information and fake alert broadcasting, the group is also sharing information about relief needs in various parts of the district and solving issues.
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Bus helper held for stealing USD 1,600 from Iranian woman's purse in Delhi; money recovered
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has arrested a bus helper and recovered USD 1,600 that was allegedly stolen from the purse of an Iranian woman who had forgotten it on a private bus at ISBT Kashmere Gate, an official said on Sunday.
The incident came to light on December 15, when a complaint was lodged at the ISBT Kashmere Gate police post by Dr Ali Akbar Shah, a professor at Delhi University and a resident of Mukherjee Nagar, the police said.
He informed police that his guest, Fareshteh Sayanjali, an Iranian national, had arrived in India on December 13 and was staying at his residence, they said.
The woman had travelled to Uttarakhand's Rishikesh and was returning to Delhi on December 15 in a bus. While de-boarding at ISBT Kashmere Gate around 1.45 pm, she inadvertently left her purse on the bus seat, the police officer said.
After some time, she received a phone call from the bus operator informing her that the purse had been found in the vehicle. However, when the purse was handed back to her, she discovered that USD 1,600 in cash kept inside was missing," the officer added.
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Based on Dr Shah's statement, an FIR was registered at Kashmere Gate police station on December 16, and an investigation was taken up, police said.
During the investigation, the team questioned the driver and conductor of the bus in which the woman had travelled, police said.
During questioning, the conductor told police that Monish, the bus helper, found the purse lying abandoned on a seat and handed it over to him, police said.
Monish initially attempted to mislead the investigators, but later confessed to stealing the US dollars from the purse, police said
Following his disclosure, Monish was arrested on December 17 and recovered the entire stolen amount, police said.
The accused, Monish, 26, is a resident of Jahangirpuri in north Delhi.
He has studied up to Class 10 and has been working as a helper with the private bus service for the past year, they said.
