Maneka Gandhi asks people not to abandon pets during COVID-19 crisis due to misinformation

As the rumours and misinformation around the Coronavirus continue to spread via social media, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Maneka Gandhi has urged people not to fall for them. The BJP MP took to Twitter to quell rumours that animals transmit the deadly virus to humans. She requested everyone to not abandon their pets over such misinformation and follow the instructions of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare or the World Health Organisation.

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Former Union Minister also shared the low-risk activities during the Coronavirus outbreak to promote animal welfare. Maneka Gandhi shared a post on Twitter which asked people to walk and play with your dog and reply with a picture of your dog on the tweet. Netizens thanked the BJP leader for raising awareness related to pets.

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Combating misinformation

Misinformation has become a major issue creating problems for governments and public health agencies in combating the virus. US tech giants including Google, Facebook, and Twitter, assured in a statement that they are working closely together on the novel coronavirus response efforts including jointly combating fraud and misinformation about the coronavirus.

“We’re helping millions of people stay connected while also...elevating authoritative content on our platforms, and sharing critical updates in coordination with government healthcare agencies around the world,” read the statement.

Instagram Communications had said in a series of tweets that they were removing known harmful misinformation related to COVID-19. It said that if someone taps on a hashtag related to COVID-19, it will show resources from the World Health Organisation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and local health authorities.

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