Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claim in the Lok Sabha that for the first time, an institution like the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) was established in the state of Mizoram, under his government, is misleading.
The Aizawl Regional Centre of IIMC was inaugurated on August 8, 2011, IIMC's website states.
On August 10, 2023, PM Modi delivered a speech as a response to the No Confidence motion against the NDA government by the INC over the Manipur violence.
In his speech, he stated various achievements made by his government.
"For the first time an institution like the Indian Institute of Mass Communication has been opened in Mizoram," he said.
Following the PM's speech several X (formerly Twitter) users pointed out that the claim was inaccurate.
Abhinav Pandey, the senior assistant editor at The Lallantop, a digital news outlet posted, "Describing the achievement of 9 years of North East, PM Modi said, for the first time institutions like IIMC are opening in Mizoram. But the IIMC of Mizoram was opened only in August 2011. UPA-2 was the Govt."
PM Modi ने नॉर्थ ईस्ट की 9 साल की उपलब्धि बताते हुए कहा, पहली बार मिजोरम में IIMC जैसे संस्थान खुल रहे हैं। मगर मिजोरम का IIMC तो अगस्त 2011 में ही खुल गया था। UPA-2 सरकार थी। pic.twitter.com/uCaPyu7Ozj
— Abhinav Pandey (@Abhinav_Pan) August 10, 2023
Several Congress party supporters also posted the same.
Narendra Modi lied in the Parliament by saying that BJP Govt started IIMC in Mizoram.
Fact is IIMC was established in Mizoram in August, 2011 during UPA Govt led by Dr. Manmohan Singh. pic.twitter.com/XpXCS5g7bs
— Anshuman Sail Nehru (@AnshumanSail) August 10, 2023
However, this was countered by BJP supporters with a screenshot that said a construction of a new Campus began in 2015 and was completed in 2019.
congress lives on lies#noConfidenceOnCongress https://t.co/gMHRe9hxzZ pic.twitter.com/JKVGJrEOHj
— SriRanga #Bharatiya (@SrinivasRangan6) August 10, 2023
Fact-check
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claim is misleading.
According to the official page of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Mizoram, the IIMC, North Eastern Regional Campus, began functioning from a temporary building made available by Mizoram University on August 8, 2011. This means that the institute was operational during the Manmohan Singh- led UPA regime.
"Besides allotment of land on the campus, a transit building is made available for IIMC to function since its inception. Being located on the Mizoram University Campus, students have the advantage of experiencing culturally enriching campus life and the IIMC North East Campus has been maintaining cordial and supportive relation with MZU from the start," per IIMC's website.
However, the construction of the permanent campus began in 2015 (during the NDA regime). The construction, with facilities including hostels and faculty housing, was completed only in March 2022, according to IIMC's website. However, Press Information Bureau press release said construction was completed in 2019. The total cost of the new campus amounted to Rs 25 crore. It was inaugurated virtually by President Droupadi Murmu on her visit to Mizoram in November 2022.
BOOM also reached out to Amy Felicia Danielle, Academic-cum-Teaching Associate at IIMC who confirmed that the land was allocated to IIMC in 2011.
A 2011 Press Trust of India article stated two regional centres of IIMC at Aizawl, Mizoram and Amravati in Maharashtra had started functioning from that academic year. Read more here.
According to a PIB report, "Since its inception, the campus is offering PG Diploma courses in English Journalism for which most of the students come from other parts of India and some from the North East States...The Campus also enables its students to secure employment in reputed media organisations across the country through campus placements and their own efforts..."
