BENGALURU: The Karnataka government has constituted special fact-check units in all districts to combat fake news and misinformation, especially on social media, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Monday.
Siddaramaiah was speaking at the Press Day organised by the Press Club of Bangalore in association with the Information Department.
The CM pointed out that the entire society, especially the media, should be more careful about checking and tackling fake news. Calling the spread of fake news through social media dangerous, the CM said society should be very careful about fake news.
The press and media organisations should think about this seriously, he said. Siddaramaiah said that special units have been established in every district to keep a close watch on fake news. “Fact-check units have been activated in all districts to detect, control and take action on fake news,” the CM added.
Siddaramaiah, in his budget earlier this year that, an Information Disorder Tackling Unit (IDTU) will be formed in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology and Biotechnology, to combat fake news.
The IDTU, known as the fact-checking unit, consists of a fact-checking team, an analytic team, and a capacity-building team. Siddaramaiah had stated that the proposed unit will take stringent action against those who create insecurity and fear in society by spreading fake news. A special cell will be formed in the Home Department to take the required legal action against them, Siddaramaiah said.