But an AI detection test and a visit to the site in Madurai told a different story. Madurai: The garbage disappeared in an MLA’s social media post. A post shared on behalf of TVK MLA Madhar Badhurudheen showed ‘before’ and ‘after’ photographs of a garbage dumping spot in MK Puram, claiming swift action following residents’ complaints. The purported ‘after’ image featured a JCB excavator, suggesting that the foul-smelling stretch had been cleared under the legislator’s supervision.
When TOI ran the image through Hive Moderation, an AI-content detection tool, it returned a 93.2% score indicating AI-generated content. As criticism mounted online, the MLA subsequently shared geotagged photographs of sanitation work, maintaining that the dumping spot had been cleared on Monday, Oct 5. Approached again with the findings, Badhurudheen said someone else had dumped fresh waste, and maintained that his photograph was taken on Oct 5.
Residents said the location had remained an informal dumping ground for months following the removal of municipal garbage bins three years ago. Sanitation worker Manickam said the absence of dedicated door-to-door collection vehicles forced households across the locality to dump waste at this spot. A senior corporation official said arrangements were being made to improve waste clearance across the city and maintained that the civic body never used AI-generated images in its cleanup reports.
the finding raised questions about the authenticity of the photograph presented as evidence of civic work Although such detection results are not conclusive proof of fabrication. Contacted by TOI, Madurai Central MLA Badhurudheen denied using an AI-generated image. He also claimed that accumulated garbage near a neighbourhood school was removed the following day. His explanation accounted for the fresh dumping, but did not resolve questions over the disputed image.
However, when TOI visited the MK Puram site on Wednesday night, heaps of garbage were still lying there, despite evidence of a temporary cleanup.
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