An image of a crowded street is viral on social media with a claim that people are flouting COVID-19 protocols in Manali, Himachal Pradesh after the government relaxed coronavirus lockdown norms.
Amarpreet Singh, Khalsa Aid’s Director in Asia-Pacific shared the image with a caption, “Pictures speak- No room in the hospital to no room in hotels at Manali in some days.”
Link to the post can be seen here. Many verified Twitter users have shared the same image with similar claims. See them here and here.
The image was also shared by many media organizations with a similar claim that the image is of crowded tourists who visited Manali after the government relaxed coronavirus lockdown. Financial Express also published the image with the headline that reads as, “Twitter breaks into meme-feast as Indian tourists crowd Manali streets.”
Live Mint also published the image with the caption that reads as, “Manali sees a huge influx of tourists after the state govt relaxed some Covid curbs.” Republic World also published the image in their article, “Manali can wait, virus won’t: Govt cautions citizens as tourists throng Himachal Pradesh“ and named Twitter as their source.
FactO Check:
A Google Reverse Image Search of the viral image directed us to a post uploaded by a Facebook user Amigosblink on July 5, 2021, with a caption that reads as, “This pic which is viral on social media on different platforms is clicked on 31st December 2020 by us … this is no recent pic.” The link to the post can be seen here.
We also found that Amigosblink shared a similar time lapse video showing crowd on the streets of Manali on June 6, 2021. He had shared the video with the caption, “new year eve Manali, 31st December 2020. #manali #kullumanaliAmigosblink”
It is evident that the viral image is from New Year’s Eve, December 2020. However, it is true that many hill stations like Shimla, Manali, Mussoorie are jam-packed with tourists who are visiting these places post COVID-19 lockdown.
We found a video tweeted by ANI on July 5, 2021, with the caption, “#WATCH | Tourists throng Manali town in Kullu district as the Himachal Pradesh government eases COVID restrictions.” In the video one can clearly see tourists in Manali.
#WATCH | Tourists throng Manali town in Kullu district as Himachal Pradesh government eases COVID restrictions pic.twitter.com/snIiwfcIo5
— ANI (@ANI) July 5, 2021