Karnataka govt unit IDTU records 537 fact-checks, 18 FIRs during 90-day trial period
Bengaluru: The first government-sponsored fact-checking unit of Karnataka recorded as many as 64,000 posts a day on the internet during its 90-day trial, resulting in authorities filing at least 18 FIRs and the system was secured further to prevent the spread of fake news.
The Information Disorder Tackling Unit (IDTU) of the Karnataka state government was launched during the Lok Sabha elections through its website satya.karnataka.gov.in without fanfare.
A total of 537 fact-checks were done through the IDTU, which took six hours on average, reports DH, adding that 500 of the posts checked were deemed ‘threats’.
Following the fact-check on the unit, while FIRs were filed in relation to the posts, at least two of them were for false information on the BJP and one for a post about the JD(S). Most of the FIRs filed were for misinformation about the Congress. Also, 54 per cent of the fact-check work undertaken was on posts related to politics and the elections.
The government unit is expected to continue its work with technical upgrade, including improvisation in legal action procedure and better citizen participation.
Minister for Information Technology Priyank Kharge, who launched the IDTU, said that, as the trial round provided an idea about the scale, issues and process of the program, the concerned authorities were planning for the procedure of handling cases of misinformation. He assured that there was a healthy balance of analytics, use of borderline artificial intelligence and traditional long-term research for the work of the fact-check unit.
Of the five companies selected to handle the IDTU, Gauri Media, which is a media house named after slain journalist Gauri Lankesh, Logically Infomedia Private Limited and Newsplus Communications did the fact-checking during the trial period while Trylika Technology Ltd handled the analytics of the unit. OW DataLeads, however, did not participate as the trial did not have the capacity-building component for which it was selected.
During the 90-day period, the IDTU checked the internet for threats. Logically Infomedia Pvt Ltd scanned 84.47 lakh social media and news items of interest, of which, 1.82 lakh were classified as threats.
Kharge explained that posts that could disrupt social harmony were considered threats, citing as example matter posted on cow vigilantism in Shivamogga, which was flagged.
The minister, however, countered the argument that the exercise was used for the benefit of the Congress, which is in power in Karnataka, saying the IDTU was not planned for the elections but should have been launched earlier. The trial period coincided with a heavily politically-volatile social environment, Kharge admitted.
He also asked the critics if, in case the BJP came to power in the state after the IDTU was institutionalized, they would state that the fact-check unit was for the benefit of the BJP.
A 9-member multi-departmental coordination committee was constituted in March for management of the IDTU. The panel was to have one person representing civil society, but the nomination is pending.
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Why remove Mahatma Gandhi's name, asks Priyanka on move to replace MGNREGA
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday slammed the government over its move to change the name of MGNREGA, asking what is the government's intention behind removing the name of Mahatma Gandhi who is the tallest leader not just in India but in the world.
A bill to repeal the MGNREGA and bring a new law for rural employment -- Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025 -- is set to be introduced in the Lok Sabha. According to a copy of the bill, it seeks to introduce the VB-G RAM G Bill, 2025, in Parliament and repeal the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) of 2005.
Asked about the government's move, Priyanka Gandhi said, "Whenever the name of a scheme is changed there are so many changes that have to be made in offices, stationery... for which money is spent. So, what is the benefit, why it is being done?"
"Why is Mahatma Gandhi's name being removed. Mahatma Gandhi is considered the tallest leader not just in the country but in the world, so removing his name, I really don't understand what is the objective? What is their intention?" she told reporters in Parliament House complex.
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"Even when we are debating it is on other issues not the real issues of the people. Time is being wasted, money is being wasted, they are disrupting themselves," Priyanka Gandhi added.
The bill aims at establishing a "rural development framework aligned with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047", by providing a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment in every financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work.
The bill has been listed in the Lok Sabha in the supplementary list of business issued on Monday.
Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, in the statement of purpose of the Bill, said MGNREGA has provided guaranteed wage-employment to rural households over the past 20 years.
However, "further strengthening has become necessary in view of the significant socio-economic transformation witnessed in the rural landscape driven by widespread coverage of the social security interventions and saturation-oriented implementation of major government schemes", he said.
#WATCH | दिल्ली: कांग्रेस सांसद प्रियंका गांधी वाड्रा ने MGNREGA का नाम बदले जाने पर कहा, "...वे महात्मा गांधी का नाम क्यों हटा रहे हैं? वे इस देश के, इतिहास के और दुनिया के सबसे बड़े नेता माने जाते हैं। मुझे समझ नहीं आ रहा इसके पीछे इनकी(सरकार की) मंशा क्या है? सदन चल नहीं रहा।… pic.twitter.com/gp5wNLllDu
— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) December 15, 2025
