Curb spread of misinformation campaigns and fake news on social media platforms on priority: CM

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting with all senior police officers and directed them to curb the spread of misinformation campaigns and fake news on social media platforms on priority. He held the meeting hours before the ceasefire was declared between India and Pakistan, after days of simmering tension after a deadly terror attack in Pahalgam.

In the meeting attended by Home Minister G. Parameshwara, IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge, and Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, the Chief Minister directed officials to regularly fact-check news and take stringent action against people who spread fake news on various media channels. He reviewed security across the State and decided to tighten security in prominent places of national importance, public places, power plants, and the coastal region.

In a videoconference with police commissioners, SPs, and State-level officers, the Chief Minister said that maintaining law and order and ensuring safety of the people should be the top priority. He told police officers to keep vigilance for preventing illegal hoarding of commodities and attempts to hike prices in the market. Instructing the police to conduct drills at prominent places in the State, he told police to ensure safety of sites/places which are of national prominence.

On intelligence system

Noting the necessity of strengthening the intelligence system, Mr. Siddaramaiah told police officers to ensure safety and security of the people at public places such as bus stands, railway stations.

The Chief Minister said all fire and emergency stations and helplines should be ready to provide services round-the-clock in all district headquarters. He stressed the necessity of strengthening the civil defence system and suitable training to handle emergency situations. He told police officers to recruit more volunteers in the civil defence.

In coastal belt

He instructed all commissionerates to be on alert, tighten security at power stations and avoid gathering of the people in large numbers. The police were told to keep vigilance on prominent places in the coastal belt of Karnataka. Noting the recent murder of Hindutva activist and rowdy sheeter Suhas Shetty in Mangaluru, the Chief Minister asked them to update the list of criminals and those who indulged in communal violence.