GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING
RAJYA SABHA
STARRED QUESTION No.*313
(TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.03.2026)
FUNCTIONING OF PIB FACT CHECK UNIT
*313. SHRI DEREK O’ BRIEN:
Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state:
(a) whether Press Information Bureau’s Fact Check Unit (FCU) has no enforcement powers
and only flags posts for further action, if so, the...
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION No.*313 (TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.03.2026) FUNCTIONING OF PIB FACT CHECK UNIT *313. SHRI DEREK O’ BRIEN:
Will the Minister of INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING be pleased to state:
(a) whether Press Information Bureau’s Fact Check Unit (FCU) has no enforcement powers and only flags posts for further action, if so, the reasons therefor;
(b) year-wise number of items flagged by FCU since 2023 and details of action taken by any regulator or authority on such flagged items;
(c) sanctioned strength and present staff position of FCU, along with number of vacant posts;
(d) details of tools, technologies and methods used by FCU to identify and classify fake news or misinformation; and
(e) whether fake news is defined in any statute or rule, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)
(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (e) OF THE RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *313 TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.03.2026 ON FUNCTIONING OF PIB FACT CHECK UNIT
(a) to (e):
A Fact Check Unit (FCU) has been set up under Press Information Bureau (PIB), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in November, 2019 with the objective to identify fake news & misinformation pertaining to the Government of India. After verifying the authenticity of news from authorised sources in Ministries/ Departments of Government of India, FCU posts correct information on its social media platforms.
The year-wise details of queries received and resolved by the FCU since 2023 is as below:
Total Number of Number of Fake News Year Actionable Queries Identified 2023 6,623 557 2024 6,320 583 2025 21,289 611 2026 2,463 119 (till 15th March 2026) The FCU is headed by a DG/ADG level officer of the Indian Information Service (IIS). A Director is the operational head managing the daily operations of the Fact Check Unit. The Director is assisted by a Deputy Director. The Unit reports to the Principal Director General, PIB.
Fake news is commonly understood as information that is false or misleading and presented as news. Section 353 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita deals with statements, including any false information, rumour, or report, including through electronic means, conducing to public mischief.
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