Fact Check: Video of massive traffic jam is from Pakistan, not Himachal Pradesh

The video was also shared by actress Bhairavi Goswami on Twitter with the caption, "Wanna go for a lovely, relaxing holiday to Khandala? Enjoy the rains, a beautiful long drive #Weekend #travel."

Fact Check

The claim is false.

It is worth noting that after a landslide in Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur on 26 July, this video has been going viral on social media. People have been advised not to go to Himachal after nine tourists were killed and three injured in the landslide.

According to a report by The Times of India from 26 July titled "Rolling boulders, severed bridge, crushed cars", nine tourists were killed and three others injured on Sunday afternoon after heavy boulders, set loose by a massive landslide, fell on their van near Basteri village in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh.

NewsMeter performed a Google reverse image search of a screenshot from the viral video which led us to a video aired by a YouTube channel called 'Words Cannot Express' on 26 July 2021. The description of the video stated that tourists flocked to the Kaghan valley of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Mansehra district in record numbers for Eidul Azha. Hundreds of vehicles choked the roads, causing traffic jams in the scenic tourist site, it said.

According to a report by News24 published on 25 July 2021, thousands of tourists were caught in a traffic mess at Kaghan Valley.

The news of the traffic jam in Kaghan valley in Pakistan was also aired on a YouTube channel 'Ary News' on 26 July 2021. The description of the video said roads were blocked, hotels were full, and tourists were stuck on the roads towards Kaghan.

We then found a tweet by a lawyer that said, "If you're thinking of going to the Northern areas, please DON'T. There is a traffic emergency- it took us 12 hours to travel from Naraan to Kaghan. People park their cars and sleep in them."

It is evident that the video is not from Himachal Pradesh but from the Kaghan Valley in Pakistan.