I&B minister says 94 YouTube channels blocked after fake news reports

NEW DELHI: Anurag Thakur, Information and Broadcasting Minister announced on Thursday that during 2021-22, the government blocked 94 YouTube channels, 19 social media accounts and 747 Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) for spreading fake news.

In response to a question raised at the Rajya Sabha Thakur said that the action was taken under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The government has acted strongly against agencies that work against the country's sovereignty by spreading fake news and propaganda online, NIE reported.

Thakur said that a dedicated cell of the fact-checking unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) was constituted on March 31, 2020, to check the spread of fake news related to Covid-19. The unit responded to 34,125 actionable queries. Thakur also said that PIB has cracked down on fake news and 875 of their posts on its social media platforms.

The crackdown on digital channels, portals and social media handles running an anti-India agenda and spreading fake news began in December when the ministry ordered the blocking of 20 YouTube channels and two websites operating from Pakistan. Since then, digital media channels have been blocked by the ministry in a phased manner.