Issuing another clarification on the fake photo of a damaged Metro flyover pillar being circulated on social media, the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) authorities have appealed to the citizens to ignore the fake photo.

A fake photo of a poorly constructed flyover pillar, which seems to be on the verge of collapse, purportedly taken in Islamabad, Pakistan has been shared widely across social media. The messages claim that the photo of the pillar was taken at Gachibowli.

To dispel the hoax, the officials had earlier issued several clarifications. Minister of IT, KT Rama Rao, also confirmed that it was a fake photo. However, when this failed to stop the hoax menace, HMRL on Thursday said on its official Facebook page, “This image, which is doing rounds yet again in social media, is fake. It belongs to the elevated metro bus system in Rawalpindi, Islamabad. It has been in circulation for the last one year or so.”

HMRL further stated, “Our pillars can withstand thousands of tons of weight and 21 types of stresses including earthquakes.”

It also said that some vested interest groups are not able to stomach the grand success of the Hyderabad metro rail and hence have again started circulating the fake photo to propagate fear.

The hoax has been in circulation since last year. In response to a Twitter user who asked the Minister if the pillar really had cracks, KTR had replied, “This is not in Hyderabad. Neither in Metro nor in PVNR.” He also shared the link to a related news item to clear the air.

HMRL Managing Director NVS Reddy had also issued a clarification, yet fearmongers have been persistently sharing the photo.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, police arrested a 65-year-old man at Nagole metro station for voyeuristically taking pictures of girls and women on trains. The accused, N Narasimha, was detained by a SHE team during a decoy operation. The police found several photos of women on his phone. He was arrested under IPC section 354-C (voyeurism).