In a major step, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Monday blocked 16 YouTube channels for ‘spreading disinformation related to India’s national security, foreign relations, and public order’. Of the 16 blocked channels, six were based in Pakistan and the rest in India, the government said. 

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"Information and Broadcasting Ministry blocks 16 YouTube news channels (under IT Rules, 2021) for spreading disinformation related to India’s national security, foreign relations and public order .These channels were spreading false and unverified information," Information and Broadcasting Ministry wrote on Twitter. 

According to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, the blocked YouTube channels and the Facebook account had a cumulative viewership of over 68 crore and were spreading “false, unverified information to create panic, incite communal disharmony and disturb public order in India. 

“It was observed that these channels were used to spread fake news over social media on matters related to national security, India’s foreign relations, communal harmony in the country, and public order,” the government wrote in a release. 

“YouTube channels were spreading false, unverified information to create panic, incite communal disharmony and disturb public order in India. Blocked YouTube-based news channels had a viewership of over 68 crore,” it added.

Furthermore, the MeitY in its release said that the YouTube channels based in Pakistan were being used in a coordinated manner to post fake news about various topic pertaining to India. The list includes subjects such as the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir, and India’s foreign relations in the light of situation in Ukraine among other things.