Fact Check: Punjab floodwater washes away house, cattle? Viral video is AI-generated

Hyderabad: Punjab remains on high alert as incessant rains and rising water levels in major rivers, combined with controlled releases from Bhakhra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams, have triggered the worst floods in decades.

The floods have affected 1,650 villages across all 23 districts, submerging over 1.75 lakh acres of farmland and causing massive damage to paddy and other crops.

Meanwhile, a viral video circulating on social media shows muddy floodwater violently gushing into a house, sweeping away cots, a buffalo and a boundary wall as people frantically run for their lives. The footage has been widely shared with the claim that it shows the floods in Punjab.

An X user shared the video with the caption, “The situation in Punjab is heart-wrenching. And the country’s Prime Minister is busy with leisure trips.” (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the video is generated by AI.

We noticed users commenting on the post, suggesting that the video is AI-generated.

We also noticed discrepancies in the video, including water sweeping away the wall while the men emerge unhurt, and the buffalo mysteriously vanishing from the scene.

We fragmented the video into keyframes and analysed a frame through the AI detection tool Wasit AI, which confirmed that the image was artificially generated.

We also analysed the video using Deepfake-O-meter, where one detector flagged it as 100 per cent AI-generated, another detected 99.7 per cent artificial content, and a third indicated it was likely AI-generated with 57.1 per cent confidence.

Therefore, we conclude that the video does not depict any real incident of floods sweeping the house. It is AI-generated, and the claim is false.