Fact Check: Video showing a cow rescued from a canal is not from India but Turkey

A video showing a bulldozer rescuing a cow that was being swept away in a canal is being shared virally with a claim that the incident took place in India. The video shows the cow being swept away in the canal, while a bulldozer stationed on the banks of the canal promptly rescues the cow and safely places it on the ground.

The claim is in circulation with the caption: “That is the beauty of India”

Fact Check:

The claim is false. The video is from Turkey and not India.

When we extracted key frames from the video and searched using Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by a Twitter account named Middle east eye on June 26, 2023.

The caption states that the footage shows a cow being swept away by water current in Igdir, Turkey. The bulldozer operator manages to safely rescue the animal from meeting a tragic end.

The video was also published by TRT World News on June 27, 2023. The description on the video states that a Turkish digger operator successfully rescued a cow that had fallen into an irrigation canal after it was dragged some four kilometers by high-flowing water in the country’s Igdir province. Subscribe to our channel for all our latest in-depth, on-the-ground reporting from around the world.

In a report published on Mymodernmet.com, a young cow is dragged down a muddy water canal in Iğdır, Turkey. The animal tries to keep its head above water, but can't fight the strength of the current. Then, in a swift motion, an excavator stationed beside the canal catches the calf and lifts it out of the water with incredible ease. The machine operator even lays the claw down gently, doing his best to give the cow a smooth landing. In the last seconds of the clip, the calf, fortunately, seems to stand up on its own.

The video was also published by telegraph.co.uk.

Therefore, the viral video showing a cow being rescued from a canal using a bulldozer is from Turkey, not India. The claim is false.