FACT CHECK: School with broken ceiling is in Uttarakhand, not Gujarat
Social media users are sharing a picture of school children sitting under a broken ceiling. Users claim that it shows the condition of a government school in Gujarat.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 4 Dec 2021 5:34 AM GMT
HYDERABAD: Social media users are sharing a picture of school children sitting under a broken ceiling. Users claim that it shows the condition of a government school in Gujarat.
The photo is being shared to take a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state. The picture is being shared with the claim that reads, "Gujarat government just opened new Solar Power School. Thanks, Modiji."
FACT CHECK:
The picture of a school with a damaged roof is from Uttarakhand and not Gujarat.
NewsMeter performed a reverse image search and found few social media posts from 2018 and 2019 carrying the same image. Netizens shared the picture to comment on the deplorable condition of a school in Talla Salt village in Uttarakhand's Almora district.
Taking the location as a hint, the fact check team searched further using keywords and found a report by Jagran in March 2018. It carried a similar picture. The report mentions that a government primary school in Salt, Almora in Uttarakhand had been dilapidated for a while and had a large hole in the ceiling. A report by Hindi news publication Amar Ujala from August 2019 also confirms that it is the picture of a government primary school in Salt, Almora.
Clearly, the ceiling wasn't repaired even after almost one-and-a-half years. Parents had written to the education officials several times to repair the roof, but no action was taken.
NewsMeter contacted a local reporter in the state who confirmed that the school is in Uttarakhand. The school's roof is still in the same condition, the reporter said.
Therefore, the school in the viral picture is in Uttarakhand, not Gujarat.
Thus, the claim is false.
