Chennai: A case of women being cheated by giving false information about a contagious disease has come to light in Salem district of Tamil Nadu.
A fraudster, claiming to be a government official, had promised to give Rs 15,000 incentive to women who shaved their heads to protect themselves from the new contagious disease.
The women who spoke to the media said that a man who introduced himself as a government official called one of them and tried to gain their trust by giving details of family members.
He said that a new infectious disease similar to COVID-19 is spreading through human hair. He then said that to prevent such a disease, one should shave their heads and to justify his statement, the man gave examples from foreign countries, saying that women there had shaved their heads to keep themselves safe.
The fraudster had made them believe that the Tamil Nadu government had decided to provide financial assistance to encourage women to shave their heads.
Women who shave their heads will be given Rs 15,000 and school and college-going girls Rs 45,000 for a shave, along with a laptop, while men will be given Rs 6,000, he said.
The caller said that only a limited number of beneficiaries from the village have been selected and urged residents to share the information with their relatives. He instructed them to complete the shave before government officials arrived the next afternoon to distribute the incentive. He warned that only those who had already shaved their heads would get the money.
Believing these statements, about 20 villagers got ready to get shaved. Three women got shaved, believing that they would get the promised government assistance and protect themselves from the alleged disease.
The scam came to light when the women later tried to contact the caller about the promised payment. Their mobile phones were switched off, which made them realise that they had been duped. The remaining villagers immediately abandoned their plan to get a haircut after learning that the plan was fake.