HYDERABAD: Uttarakhand has been facing heavy rainfall over the past few days leaving a trail of death and destruction. The death toll rose to 52 on Wednesday. (Source: Indian Express)
In light of this, a picture of a statue of Lord Shiva half-submerged in water is circulating on social media. Users claim it shows the impact of recent rains in Uttarakhand.
FACT CHECK
The claim is misleading. This incident did not take place recently.
NewsMeter performed a reverse image search and found a 2013 report by 'The Atlantic' that carried the same image. According to the report, the picture of the submerged idol was taken in the flooded Ganges in Rishikesh on June 18, 2013.
In 2013, the state faced devastating floods and landslides, becoming the country's worst natural disaster since the 2004 tsunami. The torrential monsoon rains led to flash floods, cloudbursts, and landslides.
The same was also reported by 'The Hindu' and 'The Hindustan Times' in June 2013. HT captioned the image, "A submerged idol of Hindu Lord Shiva stands in the flooded River Ganges in Rishikesh."
The same visuals were also carried by ABP NEWS in their 2013 video report.
Although it is true that the incident took place in Uttarakhand, it is from 2013. Thus, the claim is misleading.