New Delhi: Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday alleged “utter chaos and rank mismanagement” at the India-AI Impact Summit, being held in New Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam. He claimed that the participants and founders are encountering numerous challenges, such as the ban on personal electronic devices and bags, along with the requirement to use cash instead of digital and UPI payments.
He further suggested that the Modi government “should learn” from the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS). In a post on X, Kharge said, “What could have been a showpiece AI Summit for the entire world demonstrating the digital & AI capabilities of India, has reportedly turned into utter chaos and rank mismanagement by this ‘PR hungry’ government!” “Founders, exhibitors and visitors — all face extreme distress due to the PM gatecrashing for a photo opportunity on the very first day,” he added.
The Congress chief further alleged, “Exhibitors are left without food and water, their products are stolen, Digi Yatra miserably fails, laptops, personal electronic devices and even bags are prohibited, only cash instead of digital/UPI payment is accepted, and founders are made to pay huge sums without basic facilities, among many other reasons of distress.”
He said that it is “extremely unfortunate” that India has to “suffer this global embarrassment due to the incompetence of our own government”. “Perhaps the Modi Govt should learn from the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS), which is an annual feature in smoothly organising such large-scale Digital & Tech congregations,” Kharge added.
The AI Impact Summit is an international summit on artificial intelligence, being held in New Delhi from February 16-20. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that the summit is anchored in three ‘Sutras’ — ‘People, Planet and Progress’ — which articulate India’s framework for international cooperation in the field of Artificial Intelligence.
The event aims to bring together global leaders, policymakers, innovators, and subject-matter experts from across the world to deliberate on the future direction of Artificial Intelligence. According to the MEA, ministerial delegations from more than 45 countries will also participate in the summit. The United Nations Secretary-General and senior representatives from several international organisations are slated to join the discussions.
