Fact check: `Pitri river' does not exist, viral claims are false
A video of a stream is viral on social media. Users claim it is ‘Pitri river’ that appears for a month every year in south India.
By Tejal Sinha Published on 2 Oct 2021 9:45 AM IST
Hyderabad: A video of a stream is viral on social media. Users claim it is 'Pitri river' that appears for a month every year in south India.
Users claim it appears during the new moon of Pitru Paksha and then merges on the new moon of Diwali. They further claimed that this river is visible for only one month.
"This river of South India appears on the new moon of Pitru Paksha and merges on the new moon day of Deepawali. ... this river is visible only one month, then it merges in nature... isn't it a wonderful miracle of nature (sic)," reads the English translation of the post.
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Fact Check
The claim is False.
NewsMeter performed a Google Reverse Image Search, which led us to a video aired on YouTube on September 19, 2017. "Kaveri waters reached Mayavaram district in Tamil Nadu," reads the thumbnail.
Taking a cue from this, NewsMeter performed a keyword search which led us to reports published by The Hindu on September 11, 2017, Deccan Chronicle on September 10, 2017, and Navrang India BlogSpot.
Quoting Yogi Ganapathy Gajananda Saraswathi of Tiruvenkadu, co-ordinator of the Cauvery Pushkaram, the report by Deccan Chronicle reads: "We have requested the Karnataka government to release water and ensure the festival is held on a grand scale. Already the excess water from reservoirs in Karnataka is flowing into the Hogenakkal, Srirangam, and Kallanai. We have also pitched our hopes on the Tamil Nadu government to release the water from the Kallanai on either the night of September 10 or the following morning, just in time for the Pushkaram"
The team also found a report by The Hindu which was published on September 19, 2017. It was headline 'Froth-filled fresh water gushes into temple town'.
"Water released from Mettur Dam for the Maha Pushkaram event being celebrated in sacred places along the banks of the river is expected to reach Mayiladuthurai on Tuesday where the main event is being observed at the Cauvery Thula Kattam," the report said.
It is therefore evident that the claim is False. The video dates back to 2017 when the Karnataka government released water for the devotees to celebrate Maha Pushkaram in Tamil Nadu. Pitri river does not exist.
