A set of old and unrelated images, mostly from the US, of tractors with steel or iron wheels have gone viral with the claim that ‘wheels without tyre tubes’ are being made for tractors at the Delhi borders.
The social media posts go on to suggest that this is in response to the iron nails put up by the security forces to barricade the capital from the protesting farmers.
CLAIM
The images were shared with the caption,
“बिना टायर ट्यूब के चक्के तैयार किए जा रहे हैं ट्रैक्टर के सरकार द्वारा सड़कों पर कीलें लगाने का जवाब देने के लिए, साहिब जी यह होता है आत्म निर्भर भारत”
(Translation: “Wheels without tyre tubes are being prepared for tractors to answer the government's decision to put spikes on the roads, Sahib ji this is self reliant India.”)
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
The images in the collage are old and unrelated to the farmers’ protest. Let’s look at them one by one.
IMAGE 1
A reverse image search led us to Tumblr page by user ‘rollerman1’ who is based in the US. The picture dates back to 2016.
We also found that the tractor in the image looks similar to the Massey Ferguson machines, whose logo can also be seen at the back.
IMAGE 2
We found the original wall art being sold on Amazon by Art Prints Inc, which is based in Arkansas, US, with the title, “Old Metal Wheels John Deere Wall Picture.”
The words ‘John Deere’ can also be seen in the viral image.
IMAGE 3
A reverse image search led us to a YouTube video by a channel called, ‘Small Scale IndustrY Ideas.’ The video, titled, ‘Tractor IRON "Cage Wheels" Handmade The Proletariat Workers’ was uploaded on 18 July 2019.
The image in the collage is the thumbnail for the image.
IMAGE 4
The image is available as a stock image on ‘Dreamstime.com’ with the caption, “This Massey-Harris Model 55 farm tractor came with steel wheels.”
The image was also tagged as ‘vintage,’ ‘USA’ and ‘Wisconsin.’
IMAGE 5
A reverse image search led us to a video on YouTube by ‘Bontrager Entertainment’ on 27 June 2013.
The image in the collage is the thumbnail of the YouTube video, with the description, “Brief history of farming and reason for using steel wheels by the Horse & Buggy Mennonites of New York.”
Evidently, old images of tractors, including stills from YouTube videos and stock photos, have been falsely linked to the ongoing farmers’ protest.
(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at webqoof@thequint.com and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)