Claim: According to a viral message circulating on WhatsApp, a natural gas shutdown will be implemented across the country, including Karachi, from 1 December 2021. The text, which is being attributed to Pakistan’s Energy Minister Hammad Azhar, provided three discrete daily time slots during which the shutdown would be lifted and gas supplied.
Fact: No such gas supply schedule has been issued by the Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC), Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), Ministry of Energy, or Azhar, the minister.
A WhatsApp chain message claiming that gas load-shedding would start across Pakistan from 1 December 2021 has been circulating, causing panic after the federal government announced it would ensure gas supply during the three meal times each day. The text message in question provides three daily time slots — 7:00am to 8:00am, 12:00pm to 1:00pm, and 7:00pm to 8:00pm — during which it is claimed gas will be supplied.
Soch Fact Check received the same WhatsApp chain message on 13 November 2021 for verification. The text went particularly viral on 14 November and has since been making the rounds on the Internet.
Screenshots of various images containing the fake schedule that appeared on social media platforms and were circulated on WhatsApp
Azhar, the energy minister and a PTI leader from a Lahore constituency, had said on 12 November that the government planned to “supply uninterrupted gas to domestic consumers three times a day for cooking only during winter in view of the gas shortage in the country”, according to a report by The News.
The minister did not provide a schedule or potential timings for the availability of natural gas for consumers across the country.
However, Geo News reported that due to load-shedding, consumers would get gas only from 5:30am to 8:30am, 11:30am to 2:00pm, and 4:00pm-10:00pm, citing sources at the SNGPL. The channel broadcast the news report during its 3pm bulletin, with the same clip being uploaded to its YouTube account at 3:37pm, followed by a more focused news segment on the matter at 4:13pm.
A screenshot of Geo News news bulletin on YouTube where the channel reported that due to load-shedding, consumers would get gas only from 5:30am to 8:30am, 11:30am to 2:00pm, and 4:00pm-10:00pm, citing sources at the SNGPL
Soch Fact Check used YouTube Data Viewer — a tool created by Amnesty International’s Citizen Evidence Lab — to determine that roughly a day and a half elapsed between the time of Azhar’s comments on the issue in the Senate’s 12 November sitting and the Geo News reports.
Interestingly, the WhatsApp chain message appeared to pertain to the entire country and specifically mentioned Karachi, even though Geo News cited sources at the SNGPL as the basis for its reporting on the matter.
The chain message with the dubious schedule was not only circulated on WhatsApp but was also shared on different social media platforms, both in picture and text form. Some of the posts included images of Azhar, as well as screenshots of news ticker cards from Aaj News’ bulletin reporting the news.
Screenshots showing Facebook groups comprising thousands of users where the fake schedule was shared
According to CrowdTangle, there are more than a dozen posts featuring similar text and/or images with the text, with a rising trend of interactions from the period of 7-13 November onwards. One user also uploaded a news bulletin clip from GTV.
Both the SSGC and the SNGPL have issued clarifications, making clear that the gas supply schedules circulating on social media are inauthentic.
“Please note this is fake news and SSGC has nothing to do with it. If there is any curtailment announcement, it will be from the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division),” the SSGC wrote on Twitter.
“No schedule has been issued by Sui Northern Gas regarding gas shutdown / working hours,” the SNGPL said. “Rumors circulating that gas shut-off times are incorrect are incorrect,” it added.
Tweets from the SSGC, SNGPL, and the Ministry of Energy denying having issued the gas supply schedules in question
The Ministry of Energy tweeted that news of gas being “provided to domestic consumers only three times a day” was “misleading”. It added: “However, the ministry has instructed Sui Northern [SNGPL] officials to ensure supply of gas to domestic consumers at meal times.”
Conclusion: Energy Minister Hammad Azhar announced that the government will ensure the availability of natural gas to domestic consumers during three daily meal times. While Azhar’s speech may have caused some confusion, authorities — including the SSGC, the SNGPL, and the Ministry of Energy — have not issued time schedules pertaining to the supply of natural gas to consumers.