Authors
Social media users passed off an image of Manila’s garbage-ridden river as Mumbai’s Mithi river. This was shared along with an image of Ahmedabad’s Sabarmati riverfront as a comparison of work done by the government of the two states—Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Bharatiya Janata Party’s Priti Gandhi tweeted the two images with the caption, “Pic 1 – Sabaramati Riverfront, Ahmedabad, Gujarat. (Fund spent by Gujarat State: ₹1400 crores). Pic 2 – Mithi River, Mumbai, Maharashtra (Funds spent by BMC & MMRDA: ₹1000+ crores) #TaleOfTwoCities #ModiHaiToMumkinHai”
Gandhi’s tweet received over 2.5K likes and 1.3K retweets at the time of writing this article. An archived version of her tweet can be viewed here.
This claim was shared by other users on Twitter and Facebook as well.
Earlier this month, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation built a bridge over Mithi river in a record period of five months. “The old and badly-dilapidated bridge, built in 1940, was declared dangerous and demolished in December 2020,” said BMC Additional Municipal Commissioner P. Velarasu via Mumbai Mirror. The new bridge includes a 1.20 metre wide footpath on both sides as well as protective walls on either side to help with floods during monsoons.
Also Read: Over A Decade-Old Image Of Crowd Gathered Around Water Tanker In Delhi Shared As Recent
Fact Check / Verification
We performed a Google reverse image search for both images shared by users in the claim. The first image led us to Sabarmatiriverfront.com and can be seen under ‘River Promenade’ on scrolling down.
A reverse search of the second image led us to a June 2019 article published by the BBC titled, “A simple online system that could end plastic pollution.”
The BBC article details how tonnes of plastic trash was removed from Manila Bay in the Philippines by paying volunteers through digital currencies. Brooklyn-based Bounties Network began their pilot project in December 2018, which later led to other organisations following similar systems to clean-up the city’s plastic waste. This article includes the garbage-ridden river’s image with the caption, “Many of the poorest communities are the most affected by plastic waste,” and credited to Getty Images.
We also found the garbage-ridden river’s image on Lonely Planet captioned, “Shanties on stilts standing on a polluted river in the Philippines,” and credited to Getty Images.
The image was also uploaded on Shuttterstock.com by Antonio V Oquias. It’s description reads, “MANILA, PHILIPPINES – JANUARY 6: A river of garbage prevents the flow of water on January 6,2008 in Manila, Philippines. Poverty and garbage disposal are major issues in the Philippines.”
Also Read: Did Nepal Or China Cause Flooding In Bihar & UP?
Conclusion
Social media users falsely passed off an image of Manila’s garbage-ridden river as Mumbai’s Mithi river in a comparison with Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad.
Result: Misleading
Our Sources
Sabarmati Riverfront: https://sabarmatiriverfront.com/
BBC: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190613-a-simple-online-system-that-could-end-plastic-pollution
Lonely Planet: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/philippines-tackles-its-waste-problem-by-building-roads-from-recycled-plastic
Shutterstock: https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/manila-philippines-january-6-river-garbage-81096307
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