Fake news on social media leads to vaccine hesitancy in parts of Kolkata – India Today

At a time when the central and state governments are advocating vaccination as the most effective way to beat Covid-19, unverified news circulating on social media is discouraging people from taking their jabs.

In Kolkata's Mominpur area, traders at the century-old Braunfield Market are skeptical about getting vaccinated. India Today spoke to some vendors to understand why.

Mohammed Salim, 45 years of age, runs a stationery shop at the market and also sells masks. He said that the vaccines seem to be causing impotency and even death.

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"I have heard that people are becoming impotent. I have also heard that patients are dying after taking the vaccine. And many people are developing a fever. Now, we are scared," Salim said.

A few blocks away from Salims shop, Sabbir Ali Molla owns a meat shop. He stated that he was scared to take the vaccine because he had read a Facebook post that claimed people who get vaccinated will die in two years.

Sabbir Ali Molla (Photo: Suryagni Roy)

"A post attributed to a German noble laureate went viral. It said that people will die within two years if they take the vaccine," he said.

About a week ago, a statement attributed to French virologist and Nobel laureate Luc Montagnier that said all vaccinated people will die within two years had gone viral on social media. This was later debunked as misinformation and also marked as 'fake' by the Assam Police.

Molla continued, "We are also confused about which vaccine to take out of Covishield and Covaxin. Additionally, some people are saying the second dose needs to be taken after four weeks and some are saying after eight weeks. All this confusion is scaring us more."

According to Jagannath, the general secretary of the Braunfield Market Association, about 70 per cent of the markets traders have been vaccinated during the associations vaccination drive. However, some traders are scared to take the vaccine.

Jagannath (Photo: Suryagni Roy)

Only a few traders are against getting the vaccine, mainly because they are scared of it. We are trying to build confidence by telling them that the vaccine is not harmful. Fake news on social media is manipulating them," said Jagannath.

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Fake news on social media leads to vaccine hesitancy in parts of Kolkata - India Today