Fact Check: Viral images showing Ayodhya railway station are AI-generated
Construction of Lord Shri Ram’s temple in Ayodhya is in full swing. The Temple Trust is confident that the construction will be completed and that it will be open for devotees by mid-January 2024.
Claim :
Viral images show state-of-the-art railway station in AyodhyaFact :
The images are AI-generated, and do not show the original railway station in Ayodhya
Construction of Lord Shri Ram’s temple in Ayodhya is in full swing. The Temple Trust is confident that the construction will be completed and that it will be open for devotees by mid-January 2024. The Indian Railways also geared up to complete the redevelopment work of the Ayodhya railway station by January 15, 2024.
Meanwhile, a few social media users are sharing a few images online with the claim that they show the ‘Ayodhya Railway Station, which itself is looking like a spiritual center. The images show grand railway stations with Lord Shri Ram photos etched on the walls. But the name of the station has a lot of spelling mistakes on it.
The claim is virally shared by Telugu speaking social media users also. The claim reads: “అయోధ్య రైల్వే స్టేషన్ ను వచ్చే జనవరిలో జరిగే రామ మందిరం ప్రారంభం నాటికి ఈ నమూనాల తరహాలో అభివృద్ధి చేయాలని ప్రణాళిక రూపొందించారు. ఇందులో భాగంగా రూ.200 కోట్లతో అభివృద్ధి పనులు ఇప్పటికే కొంతకాలంగా శరవేగంగా జరుగుతున్నాయి. దీంతో రైల్వే స్టేషన్ ఒక ఆధ్యాత్మిక కేంద్రం తరహాలో మారనుంది.”
When translated, it claims: “An action plan has been designed to develop the Ayodhya railway station on the lines of the models depicted here, the time the Ram Mandir is opened next January. As a part of this, development works worth Rs 200 crore are being executed at a brisk pace. This will turn the railway station into a spiritual centre.”
Fact Check:
The claim is False. The viral images are AI-generated images and do not show the original Ayodhya railway station.
According to an article in Financial Express, the redevelopment work of Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya railway station is in full swing. The Ayodhya railway station holds a special place on the nation’s rail map due to its religious significance. Indian Railways operates many trains to Ayodhya catering to the needs of the passengers from across the country. The city is the holy land of faith, devotion, and Lord Ram’s birthplace.
The Ministry of Railways posted a few images with the caption “Redevelopment of Ayodhya Railway Station”. Architecture inspired by the Shri Ram JanmBhoomi Temple
Completed Works, Station Building Parking areas, External Water supply, External Electrification, Electrical Installations, Station Building Signage, #NayeBharatKaNayaStation”.
These images are completely different from the images shared on social media. This post was shared on July 20, 2023.
We also found some more images shared by the Ministry of Railways in January 2023.
On further search, we found that one of the viral images was shared on X (Twitter) by a user named The Madhya Pradesh Index on October 27, 2023, with the caption: “Ayodhya Railway station, How it should be, How is it really.”
The user later shared all the images with the caption “1 Million Views. After going through all the comments many people pointed out some problems with AI images. 1. Huge cost 2. Time 3. Not easy to maintain All points are valid and I agree with them. But I still stand by my point that Ayodhya ji deserves better. The existing building is good but not the best for Ayodhya. @Amarrrrz has created some amazing AI images of Ayodhya Railway Station and it is practical too but now nothing can be done as the station building is already completed. “
Therefore, the images viral on social media are AI-generated and do not show the original railway station that is being reconstructed in Ayodhya. The claim is False.
