Following the tragic incident on January 16, 2026, in which two tourists from Kerala lost their lives at the Sela Pass Lake in Arunachal Pradesh, a video is widely circulating on social media. The viral clip shows four individuals stranded on a frozen lake and is being shared as visuals from the recent drowning incident.
Here’s the link to the above post. (Archive)
NM VERIFIED
NewsMobile checked the above claim and found it to be MISLEADING.
Running the viral video screenshots through Reverse Image Search, NewsMobile detected a news report by NDTV, dated January 6, 2025, featuring visuals matching those in the circulating clip. As per the report, four people, including two women, were trapped on a frozen lake at Sela Pass but were safely rescued without any fatalities.
Further verification showed that the same video had been shared on January 5, 2025, by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on his official Twitter account. The minister had cautioned tourists about the risks of walking on frozen lakes at Sela Pass, advising them to do so only with experienced locals and to remain alert due to freezing temperatures, slippery roads, and the possibility of avalanches.
At Sela Pass in Arunachal Pradesh. My advice to tourists: Walk on the Frozen Lakes with experienced people, drive carefully on slippery snow roads and be aware of snow avalanche. Temperatures is freezing so wear warm clothes and enjoy. Your safety is important. pic.twitter.com/UWz8xOzd57
— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) January 5, 2025
So, in conclusion, we can say that a video footage from 2025 has been linked to the recent Sela Pass tragedy with misleading claims.
