Claim : A viral video claims to show a “mysterious” cloud formation in Haridwar that occurred in December 2025.
Conclusion : The claim is misleading. This video dates back to July 2023 and was a Shelf cloud, also known as Arcus cloud. This is a natural weather formation that appears along the leading edge of thunderstorms due to rising warm air being lifted by advancing cold air.
Rating : Misleading — 
Recently an Instagram user ‘suraj_y1408’ took to the platform to share a post about a mysterious cloud in Haridwar. The visuals showcase a cloud formation with subtitles in Hindi, “ये हरिद्वार रोड का वीडियो है अभी अभी का.” In English this reads : “This is a recent video of Haridwar road.” Posted on December 18, 2025, the post also states “सच में दुनिया खत्म होने वाली है”, which in English reads, “The world is really about to end.” View the post below –
View this post on Instagram
FACT CHECK
DigitEYE India decided to investigate the claim and found that it is misleading. The video in the claim dates back to July 2023 and no such event has occurred in Haridwar in December 2025. The phenomenon showcased in the footage refers to the formation of a Shelf Cloud or Arcus Cloud.
Details:
We first conducted a reverse image search from various keyframes of the video to learn about the origin. The search took us to an X post made on July 12, 2023 by a user who wrote how “India witnessed the stunning sight of a massive shelf cloud…” Similarly, we found other users who also posted the same clip back in July 2023 which can be seen here and here.
Shared by a friend. Shot today near Haridwar. Spectacular shelf cloud.
#Manali #Storm #Rain #thunderstorm #shelfcloud pic.twitter.com/he9KXg9qse
— Anindya Singh (@Anindya_veyron) July 9, 2023
Following this we conducted a web search with the phrase “shelf cloud in Haridwar July 2023” to verify. The results took us to a report published by The Hindu on July 12, 2023, titled: “Massive ‘shelf cloud’ formation spotted in Haridwar.” The report observes how “clouds that resemble a majestic snow-covered mountain has sparked curiosity about this extraordinary weather phenomenon.” View a section from the report below:
Another report published by Livemint on 11th July 2023 has confirmed this incident. The shelf cloud is “a type of low-lying, horizontal cloud formation characterized by a clearly defined line of solid clouds.” Furthermore, these are also called Arcus clouds which “extend horizontally beneath the main cloud base and typically appears on the leading edge of a storm…” View a section from the report below:
Thus, the claim about this event occurring in December 2025 is misleading.
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