Due to cloudbursts, heavy rainfall, and the opening of an Indian dam, several regions of Pakistan, including the northern areas and Punjab, have been affected by severe flooding. This has also resulted in significant casualties. In this context, several media outlets recently published a report claiming, “Pakistan blew up a dam given by India.”
See posts from media outlets on Facebook with this claim: Ekushey TV, The News24.
See a post on a media outlet’s YouTube channel with this claim here (archive).
The same claim has also been circulated by various Facebook accounts. See here (archive).
See a post on Instagram with this claim here (archive).
Fact-check
Rumor Scanner’s team investigation reveals that the dam recently claimed to have been built by India was not blown up by Pakistan. In fact, the dam that was destroyed belonged to Pakistan. During the flood situation in Mekabela, Pakistan carried out a controlled demolition of the embankment of the Qadirabad Dam in its own Punjab province.
Upon reviewing the video circulated with the claim, a voiceover can be heard saying, “To tackle the severe flood situation in Punjab, Pakistani authorities finally did what they had threatened to do earlier. The embankment next to the Qadirabad barrage on the Chenab River has been blown up.”
Based on this, a relevant keyword search led to a report published on August 27 on the website of the Pakistan-based news outlet The Express Tribune, titled “Over 210,000 evacuated as floodwaters rise across Punjab following India’s water release”. A section of the report states, “On Wednesday (August 27), as the water level at the Qadirabad barrage on the Chenab River rose, authorities destroyed an embankment through a controlled explosion. ‘To protect the structure, we have cut the right-side embankment to reduce the water flow,’ said Mazhar Hussain, a spokesperson for the Punjab Disaster Management Authority” (translated).
Additionally, another report published on August 27 on the website of the Pakistan-based news outlet Dawn was found. The report mentions, “AFP reported that authorities blew up an embankment next to the Qadirabad barrage, which was swollen with excess monsoon water. As the water level at the Qadirabad barrage on the Chenab River continued to rise, authorities destroyed an embankment through a controlled explosion”.
Another report published on August 27 on the website of the Indian news outlet The Economic Times states, “Pakistan is battling severe floods as three rivers overflow due to heavy rains across India, leading to widespread evacuations in the Punjab province. Authorities have cut an embankment of the Qadirabad barrage to control the water flow” (translated).
Several other mainstream Indian and international media outlets also reported on this issue. Those reports also confirm that the embankment of the Qadirabad barrage was blown up by the Pakistani government through a controlled explosion and referred to Pakistan as the authority of the barrage. No reliable source mentioned that the dam belonged to India.
An investigation into the area named ‘Qadirabad’ revealed through multiple websites that Qadirabad is a village on the banks of the Chenab River in the Phalia Tehsil of Mandi Bahauddin District in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
This confirms that the authority of the Qadirabad barrage is Pakistan, and it was blown up by them.
Therefore, the claim that Pakistan blew up a dam given by India is misleading.
Sources
- The Express Tribune – Over 210,000 evacuated as floodwaters rise across Punjab following India’s water release
- Dawn – Qadirabad dam embankment blown up as it braces for flood surge
- The Economic Times – Pakistan blows up dam embankment as it braces for flood surge
- Rumor Scanner’s analysis
