No alternative to moral education in preventing rumours, misinformation: State Minister

State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Anindya Islam Amit has said there is no alternative to moral education in preventing rumours and misinformation spread through social media. He made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a discussion meeting titled 'Prevention of Rumours and Misinformation on Social Media', organised by the Jashore district administration under the initiative 'Amitrakshar' on Saturday afternoon.

The State Minister said that in the past, even less educated parents practised morality and social values, but in the current era, with modernity, moral education is gradually being lost. He emphasised that it is not enough to only make students proficient in institutional knowledge; rather, teachers and parents both need to play an equal role in shaping them into responsible citizens with humane values.

Anindya Islam Amit alleged that rumours are being spread in a planned manner to corner political and social opponents, the root cause being the erosion of moral values. He called for increasing the practice of moral education at all levels of family, educational institutions and society to curb this trend.

He also advised everyone to remain vigilant to prevent attempts to create divisions in society through the misinterpretation of religious scriptures. He said regular dialogue between the Imam Parishad and the Puja Celebration Parishad could provide easy solutions to many problems in maintaining communal harmony.

He further said that responsible individuals from various levels of society, including public representatives, religious leaders, teachers and journalists, must come forward to create public awareness against rumours and misinformation from their respective positions.

The meeting, chaired by Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Asheq Hasan, was also addressed by Jashore Superintendent of Police Syed Rafiqul Islam, Jashore district BNP president Advocate Syed Saberul Haque Sabu, general secretary and district council administrator Delwar Hossain Khokon as special guests.

Additionally, NSI Joint Director Abu Taher Md Parvez, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Education and ICT) Khan Masum Billah, Cyber Crime Unit Sub-Inspector Alok Kumar De, Imam Parishad President Maulana Abdul Mannan, Puja Celebration Parishad President Dipankar Das Ratan, and Anti-Discrimination Student Movement spokesperson Said San spoke at the event.