Govt Bans Bulk SMSes To Quell NE Rumours

Govt Bans Bulk SMSes To Quell NE Rumours, Rumours were spreading like wild fire due to bulk SMSes and postings on social media websites. Govt bans bulk SMSes to quell rumour-mongering, After reports of threatening messages being sent through SMS, MMS, e-mails and postings on social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter, to people from the Northeast in cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune, the Indian government has levied a ban on sending bulk SMSes and MMSes for 15 days.

The Union Home Ministry has asked the Department of Telecommunications to implement the order through the telecom operators. From Friday onwards, for the next 15 days no one will be able to send more than five SMSes at one go and more than 20 KB of data through mobile phones.

A large number of northeastern students fled Bangalore by special trains late Wednesday and early Thursday following rumours they would be attacked to avenge the ethnic violence in Assam. A similar exodus of people from northeastern states was seen in Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai and Pune.

Such rumours were spreading like wild fire due to bulk SMSes and malicious postings on social media websites. Morphed, fake MMSes showing atrocities against a particular community too were adding to the existing panic and frenzy, thus the government has put a ban on bulk MMSes too.

Addressing the Parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday said, “We should send clear message that we will do everything to provide security to people from northeast living in various parts of country.”

Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar also on Friday ordered an inquiry into the rumour-mongering about alleged security threats that triggered off panic and led to an exodus of people from northeastern states from this tech hub since late Wednesday.