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Fact Check: No, Clapping Together Cannot Destroy Novel Coronavirus
India, 23 March 2020 2:15 PM GMT | Updated 5 May 2020 6:38 AM GMT
Editor : Bharat Nayak |
As the founding editor, Bharat had been heading the newsroom during the formation years of the organization and worked towards editorial policies, conceptualizing and designing campaign strategies and collaborations. He believes that through the use of digital media, one could engage the millennial's in rational conversations about pertinent social issues, provoking them to think and bring a behavioral change accordingly.
By : Aditi Chattopadhyay
Aditi, part of the fact checking team of The Logical Indian likes to read, write, cook and laugh, in short live life as it is supposed to be. What makes her fascinated is to discover the truth behind a story and more often than not, it is either fact or myth at the end.
The 'Press Information Bureau Fact Check' Twitter account, which is responsible for debunking fake news related to government policies and schemes, has denied this viral message and tweeted.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for a Janta Curfew on March 22 and his appeal to everyone clap at 5 pm to extend gratitude to the helpers and medical practitioners who are working relentlessly to fight coronavirus sparked a storm of misinformation on social media.
Netizens came out with far fetched theories and claims that clapping together at 5 pm would create a "vibration" in the atmosphere that will lead to the eradication of coronavirus.
The viral message reads, "The 5 pm clapping Modi asked us to do is extremely interesting. At that time the moon is passing to a new 'nakshatra' called Revati. The playing of bells and clapping: The cumulative vibration will encourage blood circulation in the body. It's the reason they used to have huge, gong-like bells in old Shakti temples on the mountains. Someone very knowledgeable is guiding Modi about this. Hope it works. 22nd March is Amavasya, darkest day in a month. All virus, bacteria and evil forces have maximum potential and power on such days. 5 PM clapping, shankh nada etc by 130 crore people at the same time will create so many vibrations that virus will lose all potency. Must for everyone."
A YouTube video claiming 'Nadh Yoga' or sound therapy as a cure for coronavirus has also garnered attention.
Amitabh Bachchan, in a now-deleted tweet, also shared the same theory.
"T 3479 - AN OPINION GIVEN : 5 pm ; 22nd Mar, "amavasya", darkest day of month; virus, bacteria evil force at max potential & power! Clapping shankh vibrations reduce/ destroy virus potency Moon passing to new 'nakshatra' Revati. Cumulative vibration betters blood circulation (sic)," Big B wrote.
Claim:
Clapping together at 5 pm will create a vibration which will destroy the novel coronavirus.
Fact Check:
This viral claim is false.
There is no scientific evidence to state that vibrations created by collectively clapping can destroy the novel strain of Coronavirus.
The 'Press Information Bureau Fact Check' Twitter account, which is responsible for debunking fake news related to government policies and schemes, has denied this viral message and tweeted.
"NO! The vibration generated by clapping together will NOT destroy #Coronavirus infection#PIBFactCheck: The #JantaCurfew clapping initiative at 5 pm is to express gratitude towards the Emergency staff working selflessly," PIB wrote.
NO ! The vibration generated by clapping together will NOT destroy #Coronavirus infection#PIBFactCheck: The #JantaCurfew clapping initiative at 5pm is to express gratitude towards the Emergency staff working selflessly to counter #coronavirusinindia #Covid19India pic.twitter.com/WHfK4guxys
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) March 22, 2020
"There is no evidence to claim that sound will kill Coronavirus. If that were the case, India being one of the noisiest countries, the virus should have been non-existent. There is no connection between sound vibrations and the Coronavirus. It is surprising that such messages are still going viral and believed by a lot of people," News Meter quoted Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) Director, Rakesh Mishra as saying.
Therefore, It can be ascertained that sound vibration generated by clapping will not defeat the deadly novel coronavirus.
If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343
Also Read: Fact Check: Did Vladimir Putin Unleash Lions To Keep Russians Indoor?
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