New Delhi: Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Tuesday emphasized the critical role of Indian Information Service (IIS) officers in combating misinformation and promoting India’s development narrative globally. Praising social media responses by state actors for effectively countering manipulated and false information, he urged young officers to act swiftly to neutralize such misinformation. “You have to nip the fake news in the bud,” he asserted.
Dhankhar highlighted the potentially ruinous effects of misinformation on individuals and institutions, questioning, “Who protects the individual if there is a fake narrative set afloat on social media about an individual?” He described the officer trainees as “information warriors,” urging them to actively defend the privacy and reputation of those affected by false narratives.
Reiterating India’s status as the world’s most vibrant democracy, the Vice President stressed the importance of public trust in the government. “As IIS officers, you are enjoined and equipped to act as a bridge between citizens and their elected government,” he said. He expressed concern over the trend of narratives aiming to tarnish institutions, calling for their swift neutralization. “These sinister forces with pernicious agendas are operating in small numbers in the country and outside. You are the warriors,” he told the young officers.
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The Vice President also addressed the need to counter biased narratives set by global media, emphasizing, “We must never allow others to calibrate us. Global media setting biased narrative has to be blunted.” He called for taking India’s development narrative to the global stage, noting the Indian Information Service’s pivotal role in sculpting and promoting “Brand India.” “Let the world know what kind of a country we are. We are a country without a parallel; we are a country that has a rich cultural heritage and diversity. Our 5000 years civilization ethos required to be known to the world,” he added.
Dhankhar warned of the significant threat posed by misinformation to peace, stability, and democracy in the information age. He described information as the most potent weapon and the fifth dimension of war, cautioning that “manipulative, divisive, and agenda-driven narrative peddled in our information space by proxies present a real danger to the sovereignty and integrity of our nation.”
The Vice President advised probationers to stay updated with the latest technologies, recognizing that accurate ground feedback aids in the formulation of effective policies. He also commended the IIS officers for their role in the recent Lok Sabha elections. “Increasing voter awareness and securing greater participation in the world’s largest democracy by reaching out to citizens at the very last mile, you have done admirably well,” he said.
