Posted : 2014
Author : Oendrila De
India
is known as the land of beauty and magic. It is also the land of myth and
mystery, from the very ancient times. However, while the country is in the face
of improvement and advancements, the myths seem to persist even today, at a
time when information is readily available. It seems as if internet cannot be
believed totally when it comes to information about India. There are too many hoaxes
spread across the world of internet. Let’s know the country a little more by
knowing these burst hoaxes:
An image of a three-headed snake by the side of an Indian
road has been doing the round. However, this image is not a beauty of nature
but a product of Photoshop, and that too, a pretty bad one. When noticed
carefully, it can be observed that the three heads have the same pattern. Other
images of the same electrically manipulated creature has been found, too, which
show some bad editing skills, with the same shadows working on all three heads.
2. Indian National Anthem the Best in the World
The message has been circulated very proudly that UNESCO has
named the Indian National Anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana’ the best in the world. That
this is a hoax should have been clear to people by the simple fact that there
has been no media coverage of such an important issue, and suspiciously been
broadcast by the internet alone, and that too in some shifty websites and not
the principal media houses. Besides, there is no trace of any such declaration
in the official site of UNESCO. To top it all, confirmation of the story as a
hoax has been received by India Today directly from UNESCO.
3. Indian Woman Gives Birth to 11 Babies
The image of 11 babies lying side by side with the hospital
staff was all over the social networking site, with the information that an
Indian mother has given birth to 11 babies together by some miracle of God.
However, the information is a complete hoax but the image isn’t. It is
actually the picture of the 11 babies who were born on 11.11.11 at the 21st
Century Hospital & Test Tube Baby Center in Surat.
4. Newly found Image of Godse before Gandhi’s Assassination
An image with a man holding a gun has been doing the rounds
with the claim that this is the only image of Godse right before he shot
Gandhiji. However, the only picture of Gandhiji’s assassination are dramatized
ones based on the accounts of the eyewitnesses. There is no existing photograph of this unfortunate murder on record. The image being circulated is that of
a scene from a British movie, Nine Hours to Rama.
5. Python Swallows Man in Kerala
A video of a man being swallowed by a python in Kerala has
been spreading like wildfire. There are many versions of this story as well,
where the snake swallows about 4 people at once, live. In fact, this seems to
be a worldwide phenomenon, with images and videos from all over the world. The
video comes with the message that it is not for the faint-hearted. However, it
is nothing but a hoax, born from the image of some snake that must have
swallowed a goat or deer, and there have been digital manipulations of various
sorts to creep people out.
6. Rape Festival in Assam
An article about the annual celebration of a Rape Festival
in Assam
was shared widely on Facebook. However, the local people of Assam denied
the fact, and the Crime Investigation Department of Assam has even planned to
take action against this report which started spreading after Faking News, a
satirical website, published a fake article on the same subject.
7. India’s
Image from Space on Diwali
All proud Indians, at some point, have shared the satellite
image of India
on a Diwali night taken by NASA from space to show off to the world how
beautiful the country looks, all lit up and bright. However, it breaks the
heart of the Indians that this is a false picture. It has been confirmed by the
NASA officials that the image was collected by VIIRS for the detection of light
in a range of wavelengths from green to near-infrared, and brightened to
distinguish the city lights easily, meant to show the change in night
illumination during the period of 1992-2003. It was developed to illustrate the
growth in population in the country. NASA even confirmed that the extra light
during Diwali is imperceptible from space.
8. Plastic in Kurkure
Kurkure is a very popular snack in India but it
has often been said that on burning Kurkure, one can see plastic melting. This
message, along with an image of a burning Kurkure, has also been seen on the
internet. However, Kurkure is made of edible ingredients such as cornmeal,
spices, etc., and is not harmful to the health. It melts on burning because of
the carbohydrate content, and the plastic-like substance is dried starch, which
is not unhealthy at all, as approved by the brand officials.
9. Death by Phone Call
A scary message warned everyone against receiving phone
calls from the number 09141. If the claim of the message is to be believed,
the phone emits high-frequency sound waves on picking up the phone, which cause
brain haemorrhage and instant death. This is a preposterous and improbable
idea, since phones are not technologically capable of emitting such
high-frequency sound waves.
10. Contact Lenses Melt in Heat
A message with the description of a guy who became blind
after he got exposed to the high heat of BBQ grills since his plastic
contact lenses melted imbibed fear in the minds of people. However, the truth
is that since eyes are extremely sensitive to infections, contact lenses are
sterilized, thus proving that they are made to resist high temperature. In
fact, the melting point of contact lenses’ material is 90°C, at which the skin
and the face should burn too.
There are several other internet hoaxes about India, about
the world, and even some medical legends but it is important that people
analyse and tell the right from wrong, and then believe them.
~Blog Admin~
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