Photographs of a teenager saving a deer from floodwaters are yet again circulating on social media in the wake of devastating floods in Assam where the death toll has crossed 100. Over 100 animals have also died in the Kaziranga National Park. Rakshith Shivaram who identifies himself as Former State Secretary, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, drew over 31,000 likes and close to 8,000 retweets for the images.
The images were also carried on the front page of Gujarat-based Sandesh News.
Recurring images
One Susanta Nanda IFS tweeted one of the same images during the 2019 Assam floods, “Hero’s are made by the paths they choose & not by the power they grace. This picture of the earth hero from Assam is simply outstanding”. Last year, the floods had reportedly taken the lives of at least 80 people.
Another picture of a man carrying a baby above his shoulders while his body is submerged in water was also circulated with the claim that it depicts the floods in Assam.
Fact-check
On reverse searching the images on Google, Alt News found that they are old and are unrelated to the 2019 Assam floods.
Image 1
The pictures of the fawn were clicked during floods in Bangladesh in February 2014. According to a photo-story by UK-based Daily Mail, the incident took place in Noakhali, Bangladesh where wildlife photographer Hasibul Wahab had captured this brave act by a teenager named Belal. “During the ordeal onlookers were unsure whether the boy was going to appear again. When he finally made it to the other side the locals cheered as the deer was reunited with its family.”, stated the report.
The report includes several pictures of the incident.
In 2016, Assam government in a major goof-up had included one such image in its interim report on Assam floods to Union home minister Rajnath Singh.
Image 2
The other image was shot during the 2016 floods in Andhra Pradesh. Here, a desperate father was carrying his sick baby on his head through deep floodwaters to reach the nearest hospital in the state. “Pangi Satibabu, 30, a farmer, from Kudumusare village in Andhra Pradesh, carried his six-month-old daughter above his head for three miles to the nearest health centre after heavy rainfall led to a deluge.”, stated an article published by Daily Mail on September 29, 2016.
In conclusion, old and unrelated photographs clicked during floods in Bangladesh and Andhra Pradesh, India were shared as the impact of the recent floods in Assam.
[This article was updated on July 20, 2020.]
