Kashmir RTI Movement Flags Rise Of Digital Misinformation

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer) By Syed Sammar Mehdi

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Srinagar- A global debate over misinformation found an unlikely setting on Monday in Kalaroos, a remote area of Kashmir where students gathered to discuss a problem that reaches them through the same phones used by people thousands of miles away: how to know when information can be trusted.

The occasion was International Right to Information Day. The Jammu and Kashmir RTI Movement, in collaboration with the Civic Research and Development Foundation, held an awareness programme at Government Higher Secondary School Kalaroos, turning the international debate over information disorder into a discussion about something more practical: checking a source, seeking a record and asking an authority for facts.

This year's global theme,“Upholding Information Integrity in the Digital Age: The role of access to Information in addressing Information Disorder,” put public access to information alongside the growing challenge of misinformation.

Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat, chairman of the J&K RTI Movement, told the students that the Right to Information Act can provide a way through the confusion created by false or unverified information.

The law gives citizens a formal route to seek information from public authorities. That can turn a claim circulating online into a question that an official record can help answer.

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“We deliberately chose to reach out to students at Kalaroos Kupwara which is one of the remote areas of the Kashmir valley,” Bhat said.“It was great to interact with the students on this important day.”

Bhat also called on the government to establish dedicated official social media accounts for public offices at the district and block levels. Such accounts, he said, could give citizens verified updates directly from authorities on the digital platforms they already use.

The suggestion points to a basic problem with the digital information environment. People often receive information before they know its source. An official channel can give citizens a place to check what they see elsewhere.

Dr. Umar Saif, a scientist and director of research at Orchid University, focused on the other side of that equation: the person receiving the information.

He urged students to develop critical thinking, verify sources and actively seek credible information. Rapid digital communication, he said, has made source-checking increasingly important.

The discussion also moved beyond misinformation to civic participation. Senior members of the J&K RTI Movement, including Sajad Rasool and Shahid ul Islam, interacted with the students and explained mechanisms through which citizens can seek information and answers from public institutions.

The setting gave the discussion a particular relevance. Kalaroos lies far from the centres where government decisions are made, while digital platforms can bring official announcements, rumours and unverified claims into the same phone screen.

Read Also The Right To Know J&K RTI Portal Receives 65,000 Applications In 19 Months

Zahoor Hamdani, principal of Government Higher Secondary School Kalaroos, thanked the speakers for explaining the RTI Act and transparency in governance. Peerzada Mashooq, a teacher at the school, conducted the programme.

International RTI Day brought a global debate into a remote Kashmir classroom, where the lesson was simple: check the source, seek the record and ask for the facts.

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