Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
A video showing a “big cat” pouncing at and attacking a man as he cycles down a highway, before scampering away into the woods, is going viral on social media platforms. The shocked cyclist can be seen picking up his vehicle and rushing away from the spot, from the other side of the road. Several social media users shared the video claiming to show a leopard attacking a cyclist on Dehradun-Rishikesh road in Uttarakhand. Newschecker found the claim to be untrue.
The video is going viral on Facebook.
Links to such posts can be found here, here and here.
Several Twitter users also shared the footage of a leopard attacking a cyclist claiming that the incident took place at Dehradun-Rishikesh highway
Links to such tweets can be found here, here and here.
Fact Check/Verification
A keyword search for “man on cycle attacked by animal” on Google led us to multiple video reports from June 2022. One such report by Independent, dated June 15, 2022, featured the viral footage of leopard pouncing on a cyclist and stated that the incident took place at Kaziranga National Park in Assam.
“Park rangers have now urged commuters not to stop their vehicles in the area for safety reasons, warning them that the road is in a wild area where animals often cross,” the report added.
In June 2022, several news outlets- featuring the same video- reported on the leopard attack on a cyclist at Kaziranga National Park in Assam. You can check such reports here, here and here.
Displaying the viral video, a report by ETV Bharat Assam, dated June 14, 2022, elaborated that the incident took place at Haldibari Animal Corridor in Kaziranga, adding that the DFO of Kaziranga National Park Ramesh Kumar Gogoi urged the passengers to drive with caution and prevent them from parking their vehicles in the area for their safety.
On analysing the video, we could spot a board saying “Animal Corridor” erected on one side of the road.
Notably, IFS officer Parveen Kaswan also shared the video in a tweet dated June 15, 2022, and added, “the incident was captured in January in a camera installed by authorities at Kaziranga.”
A video report by news agency ANI, dated June 15, 2022, also stated that the incident took place at Haldibari Animal Corridor in Kaziranga National Park on January 19, 2022.
Though Newschecker was not independently able to ascertain the exact date of the incident, we could conclude that the footage showing a leopard pouncing on a cyclist is from Kaziranga National Park in Assam.
Conclusion
Viral post claiming to show a leopard attacking a cyclist at Dehradun-Rishikesh road is false. The incident took place in Assam.
Result: False
Sources
Report By Independent, Dated June 15, 2022
Report By ETV Bharat, Dated June 14, 2022
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Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
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