In July, Imran received in the mail a traffic violation ticket from his local police department. He had been issued a fine equivalent to $13. The letter showed an image of him riding his motorbike without a helmet, captured by a CCTV camera at one of Hyderabad’s many intersections. 

The penalty, however, was not for his lack of headgear. Residents of the southern Telangana state capital are receiving citations for a new kind of offense: failure to wear a mask.

“I was worried when I received the ticket,” said Imran, an Urdu and Arabic teacher, with a monthly income of $120. “We are in a pandemic, with difficulties in making money, and to top that I now have to pay $13.”

Hyderabad is one of India’s main technology hubs. In recent years, the sector has brought jobs and revenue pouring in. However, there is a flipside to this. The same innovations that have made the city’s name are now being used to watch its residents’ every move.