Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution
Google Maps can sometimes become a double-edged sword if you don't carefully double-check the information it provides, and over 50 students from India learned this the hard way.
Students from other districts used Google Maps to find the exam center at the Swami Vivekanand College in Samarthnagar, but instead of being directed to the right location, they were sent to an address outside the city.
The destination was so wrong that some students drove even 14 km (over 8 miles) outside the city before realizing they weren't heading to the right location. When they realized that Google Maps had sent them to Wadgaon Kolhati in Waluj, students made a U-turn, searched the web, and rushed to the correct location.
They couldn't arrive on time, and many of them were late by a few minutes, finding the gates of the examination center closed. They weren't allowed to take the exam, bursting into tears and telling authorities that it all happened because Google Maps provided incorrect navigation instructions.
Statistics show that only 4,487 of the 7,836 students registered for the UPSC civil services exam at the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar center took the test. However, it's unclear how many missed the examination due to Google Maps, albeit the number is believed to be over 50.
While Google Maps is typically very accurate, the application sometimes shows incorrect information, leading users to the wrong destination and providing dangerous routes that people still use despite obvious indications that they shouldn't do it. Earlier this year, Google Maps told a dozen drivers on the interstate to take an unpaved desert trail to avoid a road closure, sending them through the middle of nowhere.
Most drivers took the advice and left the paved road, eventually deciding to return to the interstate several hours later after realizing the suggested route was too dangerous.
The consensus is that drivers should follow a suggested route in their navigation app, be it Google Maps, Waze, Apple Maps, or other software if it doesn't look correct. Students should have checked the examination center's address online before putting all their trust in Google Maps.
Meanwhile, users online claim that Google Maps wasn't the only navigation app showing the wrong address for the examination center. Others claim that manually entering the address in the app pointed them to the correct destination.
Some students who missed the exam after following the suggested route in Google Maps claim the navigation app wasn't the one to blame because they used the address on the ticket given to appear for the civil services examination. They blame the authorities for the mishap, hoping they would be allowed to take the exam at a later date because it was their fault.
The destination was so wrong that some students drove even 14 km (over 8 miles) outside the city before realizing they weren't heading to the right location. When they realized that Google Maps had sent them to Wadgaon Kolhati in Waluj, students made a U-turn, searched the web, and rushed to the correct location.
They couldn't arrive on time, and many of them were late by a few minutes, finding the gates of the examination center closed. They weren't allowed to take the exam, bursting into tears and telling authorities that it all happened because Google Maps provided incorrect navigation instructions.
Statistics show that only 4,487 of the 7,836 students registered for the UPSC civil services exam at the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar center took the test. However, it's unclear how many missed the examination due to Google Maps, albeit the number is believed to be over 50.
While Google Maps is typically very accurate, the application sometimes shows incorrect information, leading users to the wrong destination and providing dangerous routes that people still use despite obvious indications that they shouldn't do it. Earlier this year, Google Maps told a dozen drivers on the interstate to take an unpaved desert trail to avoid a road closure, sending them through the middle of nowhere.
Most drivers took the advice and left the paved road, eventually deciding to return to the interstate several hours later after realizing the suggested route was too dangerous.
The consensus is that drivers should follow a suggested route in their navigation app, be it Google Maps, Waze, Apple Maps, or other software if it doesn't look correct. Students should have checked the examination center's address online before putting all their trust in Google Maps.
Meanwhile, users online claim that Google Maps wasn't the only navigation app showing the wrong address for the examination center. Others claim that manually entering the address in the app pointed them to the correct destination.
Some students who missed the exam after following the suggested route in Google Maps claim the navigation app wasn't the one to blame because they used the address on the ticket given to appear for the civil services examination. They blame the authorities for the mishap, hoping they would be allowed to take the exam at a later date because it was their fault.
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