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Fact Check: Times Now & India Today Share Unrelated Photo As 'Atal Tunnel'
Writer: Aditi Chattopadhyay
Aditi, part of the fact checking team of The Logical Indian likes to read, write, cook and laugh, in short live life as it is supposed to be. What makes her fascinated is to discover the truth behind a story and more often than not, it is either fact or myth at the end.
Himachal Pradesh, 5 Oct 2020 10:37 AM GMT
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The Logical Indian Fact check team investigates the claim that a viral photograph shows the recently inaugurated Atal Tunnel at Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 3rd inaugurated the Atal Tunnel at Rohtang at an altitude of above 3,000 metres in Himachal Pradesh.The 9.02 km-long-tunnel was built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). It is, reportedly, one of the world's longest highway tunnels connecting Manali to Lahaul-Spiti valley.
In light of this, a photograph of a structure, seemingly a tunnel is being circulated with the claim that it is the recently inaugurated Atal Tunnel. Crediting the photograph to tweets and News agency PTI, media channels such as Times Now, India Today and News 18 carried the photograph in their reports of the inauguration event.
Below are screenshots of the reports:
Claim:
Photograph shows the recently inaugurated Atal Tunnel at Rohtang, Himachal Pradesh.
Fact Check:
The claim is false.
A Google reverse image search of the viral photograph led to a similar image which was posted on a California based company's website.
According to the description alongside the photo, it shows the 'Devil's Slide By-Pass Tunnels' which was constructed under the San Pedro Mountain, California, United States.
Therefore, the tunnel seen in the viral photo is not located in India and is definitely not related to the recently inaugurated Atal Tunnel.
A keyword search led to a video on YouTube which shows the inauguration of the Devil's Slide Tunnels. The visuals in the video are the same as the viral photo.
Further, PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah had tweeted photos from the inauguration of the Atal Tunnel.
Below is a comparison of the viral photo (centre), Devil's Slide Tunnels (left) and the Atal tunnel (right):
Therefore, this was yet another incident where media outlets ran an unverified photograph as with false claim.
If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.
Also Read: Fact Check: Was Lieutenant General Taranjit Singh Arrested For Sedition Against Modi Administration?
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