
Indian Express Admits Error In Using Kolkata Flyover Photo In UP Govt Ad
The front page advertorial with the figure of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was accompanied by a stock image showing Kolkata's Maa Flyover, and another digitally created Shutterstock image.

On September 12, the Indian Express ran a front page ad for the Uttar Pradesh government on its Sunday edition, that used a stock photo of Kolkata's Parama Flyover, also known as Maa flyover, to illustrate the state's development under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Initially, social media users took to Twitter to call out the Bharatiya Janata Party-led UP government and its Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for the error. This ad also comes at a time when Adityanath and the BJP are currently gearing up for campaigns ahead of the assembly elections in the state next year.
However, after the error was called out, The Indian Express took responsibility for the mistake, and stated that the stock image of Kolkata's Maa flyover was "inadvertently included in the cover collage of the advertorial on Uttar Pradesh produced by the marketing department of the newspaper". They further stated that the image shall be removed from all digital editions of the paper. It is however unclear if the advertorial had been approved by the UP government.
A wrong image was inadvertently included in the cover collage of the advertorial on Uttar Pradesh produced by the marketing department of the newspaper. The error is deeply regretted and the image has been removed in all digital editions of the paper.
— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) September 12, 2021
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The ad appeared in the first page of the Delhi edition of The Sunday Express, as confirmed by readers having access to the newspaper copy. It was titled, "Transforming Uttar Pradesh Under Yogi Adityanath", and showed two stock images - with one showing Kolkata's Maa flyover - and a towering image of Adityanath in the background.
By noon, many had taken to Twitter to highlight the error made in the ad. Some TMC leaders also chimed in, and took a dig at the BJP and Adityanath.
Transforming UP for @myogiadityanath means stealing images from infrastructure seen in Bengal under @MamataOfficial's leadership and using them as his own!
— Abhishek Banerjee (@abhishekaitc) September 12, 2021
Looks like the 'DOUBLE ENGINE MODEL' has MISERABLY FAILED in BJP's strongest state and now stands EXPOSED for all! https://t.co/h9OlnhmGPw
Why to show Kolkata's Maa Flyover as work of UP Government? pic.twitter.com/Ihp6guU1vL
— Abhinav Saha (@abhinavsaha) September 12, 2021
Thuggy Yogi in his UP ads with Kolkata's MAA flyover, our JW Marriott & our iconic yellow taxis!
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) September 12, 2021
Change your soul or at least your ad agency Gudduji!
P.S. Looking forward to FIRs against me in Noida now :-) pic.twitter.com/I7TRUMvCjO
Dear @myogiadityanath ji,whoever approved these images,please do tell them the flyover appears to be from Kolkata-the Maa Flyover.I can also spot a yellow taxi. And those tall buildings are the JW Marriot,also in Kolkata and by the same flyover if I am not mistaken😃 @manishndtv pic.twitter.com/POum6H7y4N
— Alok Pandey (@alok_pandey) September 12, 2021
Lol the image on the bottom left is from Kolkata - of the Maa Flyover.
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) September 12, 2021
Zoom in & you can also see the iconic Kolkata yellow ambassador taxi on the flyover.
"Transforming UP" means spending millions on newspaper ads around India & stealing pics of development in Kolkata? pic.twitter.com/AgbkyaHo62
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Fact Check
Many of the tweets calling out the ad mentioned that the image actually shows Kolkata's Maa flyover - a flyover which connects the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass to the 7-point Crossing, a junction of some of the most important thoroughfares in the city.
People also identified the buildings seen in the photo as the JW Marriot hotel that is situated next to the flyover on the EM Bypass
BOOM cropped the ad to show just the image of the flyover and the buildings, and ran a reverse image search on Google. The results threw up a list of similar images, shown to be that of the Parama Flyover or Parama Island Flyover - commonly called the Maa flyover.
Looking through the reverse image search results, we found the exact photo used in the UP government ad on stock photo website Alamy.
According to the website, the picture was taken on 2016. The caption read, "Parama Island flyover, popularly known as Ma or Maa flyover is a 4.5 kilometer long flyover in Kolkata".
We also did a reverse image search of the other photo in the ad, which showed an engineer surveying an oil refinery. We traced the photo to yet another stock photo on Shutterstock, with this one being digitally created by an artist named 'fotoslaz'.
Updated On: 2021-09-13T17:48:15+05:30
Claim : Image illustrates transformation of Uttar Pradesh under Yogi Adityanath.
Claimed By : Indian Express
Fact Check : False
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