Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the National Standards Body of India, in association with the Data Science Foundation, organized the 5th international data science summit in New Delhi today. The conference was attended by around 130 delegates from Corporate Officers and executives involved in strategy, Government Policy Planners, Academic institutions, Electrical utilities, Researchers, Developers, and Standards Development Organizations.

Eminent speakers from across the globe discussed various topics and aspects of big data, including Big Data Standardization, Challenges with Big Data, Machine Learning, Application of Big Data Analytics in Media, and Artificial intelligence.

Recently, the topic of big data has gained significant popularity globally because of its capability to revolutionize businesses and services. Big data has an impact on every aspect of our daily life. The emerging technology areas like the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial intelligence, and machine learning are fuelled by Big data and analytics only.

In India, big data has become the primary focus of scientists and technologists because of our government’s new initiatives like ‘Digital India’.

Standardization in Big data will play a significant role in facilitating the exchange and sharing of a vast volume of data across multiple platforms, applications, and sectors. With proper standardization, a massive volume of data generated within a system can be effectively utilized by other systems/services and applications. The summit was successfully concluded, providing insights into various applications of the Big data ecosystem in emerging technology areas like Artificial intelligence, Machine learning, IoT, and Smart cities.

Source: Press Release
Release ID: 1521534
Date: February 23, 2018
PIB Delhi
Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution

Governor of Maharastra, C.Vidhya Sagar Rao, Chief Minister of Maharastra, Devendra Fadnavis, Minister in the Maharastra Govt.Shri Vinod Tawde,

Vice-Chancellor of Mumbai University, Shri Devenand Shinde,

Romesh Wadhwani ji, Sunil Wadhwani ji,

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am happy to be here today at the inauguration of the Wadhwani Institute of Artificial Intelligence.

Let me begin by congratulating Romesh Wadhwani Ji and Sunil Wadhwani Ji, The Government of Maharashtra, and Mumbai University for coming together to make this Institute a reality. This is a prime example of how the public and private sectors can combine with good intentions to build a world-class institute to benefit the poor.

I have had various interactions with the Indian diaspora across the globe during the last three and a half years or so. I have felt an intense desire to contribute to India. Through this Institute, Romesh Ji and Sunil Ji have blended this desire with a futuristic vision of a prosperous and vibrant India. In doing so, they have set an example worthy of emulation.

Friends, today, India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. We use unparalleled technology in fields ranging from agriculture to aeronautics and space missions to service delivery. We are also witnessing a wave of entrepreneurship, ranging from small enterprises to big-ticket investments. These are just a few indicators to show how well-placed we are to fare in the upcoming fourth industrial revolution.

Friends, with the arrival of artificial intelligence, bots, and robots, there is no doubt that our productivity will go up further. But, there are also rising fears of human redundancy because there is a competition between the mind and the machine. Such worries are neither unfounded nor new.

At every stage of technological evolution, we have faced such doubts and questions. This leads to two views of the future. First brings hopes and aspirations, and second brings fears of disruption.  

Technology opens entirely new spheres and sectors for growth. It also opens up a completely new paradigm of opportunities. With each wave of new technology, many new opportunities arise. New opportunities have always outnumbered the lost ones. Human ingenuity has always prevailed and will continue to do so in the future. This optimism stems from my firm faith in Ancient Indian Thinking that blended science and spirituality and found Harmony between the two/ for the greater good of mankind.

I am reminded of the ज्ञान सूक्त from the यजुर वेद तैत्त्रेय आरान्यका: “सत्ये सर्वम प्रतिष्ठितम ”. The spirit of scientific inquiry was rooted in the pursuit of Truth.

Our ancient texts further list the mental faculties that assist in this pursuit of the Truth. श्रद्धा (dedication),मेधा (mental capacity), मनीषा (intelligence),

मनसा (mind), शान्ति (peace), चित्त (elevated state of consciousness), स्मृति (memory), स्मरण (recall) and विज्ञान (application of knowledge).

From this scientific inquiry, this pursuit of the truth is to obtain the ultimate creative bliss for the greater good of mankind. I am inspired by this Vision of Technology for Development and this spirit of scientific Advancement that gives me optimism about the future.

The road ahead for Artificial Intelligence depends on and will be driven by Human Intentions. It is our intention that will determine the outcomes of artificial intelligence. With every industrial revolution, the scalability of technology has increased manifold. This has given humans increasingly more power to create an impact in whatever they do through technology. It is this ethic of development that will ensure equity for all people. The March of Technology cannot be at the expense of further increasing the difference between societies over access to technology. The evolution of technology has to be rooted in the ethics of Sabka Saath and Sabka Vikas.

Friends, Can we take the global lead on creating Artificial Intelligence that is less about making humans redundant and more about enhancing human abilities and expanding human capacities. Can we make the future less about machines displacing humans and more about humans becoming better humans by converting their weaknesses into their strengths for the greater good of mankind?

Friends, at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and Human understanding is the solution to many problems we face. We need to make artificial intelligence work for India.

I urge all of you to identify the grand challenges Artificial Intelligence can solve for India. We are a diverse nation of tens of languages and hundreds of dialects. Can we have intelligent Artificial Intelligence that makes communication and conversations across these languages and dialects easier? I have always believed that the Divyangs are our asset, and the nation owes it to them to empower them.

Can we have Artificial Intelligence and Robotics that enhance their abilities, empowering them to perform tasks and bring out their true potential? Can the combination of teachers and Artificial Intelligence help us bridge the gap in the teacher-student ratio? This will help us deliver quality education to every student across India. Can Artificial Intelligence help us take quality healthcare to every corner of India by expanding the capacities of our healthcare workers? Can Artificial Intelligence help us predict natural calamities? Can Artificial Intelligence help us detect severe health conditions before they manifest physically? Can artificial intelligence help our farmers decide on the right weather, crops, and sowing cycle?

Friends, our Government firmly believes that we can use the power of twenty-first-century technology to eradicate poverty and disease. Doing so can bring prosperity to our poor and underprivileged sections. We are committed to achieving this vision. The Digital India Initiative aims at transforming India into a digitally empowered society and a knowledge economy. Under Bharat-Net, we are providing broadband Internet connectivity to our villages. This digital infrastructure/ provides the backbone for innovative IT solutions for service delivery and applications.

The Union Government’s National Skill Development Mission aims to ensure a rightly-skilled workforce, considering the global job requirements of the next few decades. We have also launched the Atal Innovation Mission to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. Its objective is to serve as a platform for fostering world-class Innovation Hubs, Grand Challenges, Start-up businesses, and other self-employment activities, particularly in technology-driven areas. The Atal Innovation Mission is establishing Atal Tinkering Laboratories in schools across India to encourage one million children in India to become young innovators. Through these steps, we aim to keep pace with emerging technologies so that they can be used for the benefit of our people.

Friends, I am sure this Institute’s scientists, researchers, and pioneers will have the best interests of the ordinary people of India in their hearts as they go about their work. I wish them well in their efforts. I hope India will be in a unique position to show the world how artificial intelligence can be applied safely and responsibly for the benefit of the people.

I am pleased to inaugurate this Institute and hope it shall remain committed to serving our people.  

Source: Press Release

Release ID: 1520873

Date: February 18, 2018

PIB Delhi

Prime Minister’s Office

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh has said that over the last three years, the Government led by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has taken several decisions to “ease doing of business”. As a result, India has begun to attract investors from all over, who are willing to set up ventures even in the hitherto lesser preferred regions like the North-Eastern part of the country. In other words, Dr Jitendra Singh said India, including the Northeast, is fast emerging as a preferred destination for business and entrepreneurship.

Speaking at a “Luncheon Round-table” meeting on the topic “Sustainable Production through Fourth Industrial Revolution Innovations” in Davos, Switzerland, yesterday, Dr Jitendra Singh allayed the fears expressed by some of the participants about excessive regulatory controls exercised by certain governments across the world and said, that in the last over three years, the Government of India has made a conscious effort to bring in ease of business through relaxation of avoidable regulations. He said, within a short span of 3 to 4 years, the Government has done away with nearly 1,500 such rules and regulations which had become obsolete and irrelevant in this age.

Dr Jitendra Singh said he expressed his views on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robots to promote production and business in the times to come. At the same time, these technological advances can prove to be an asset by contributing to sustainable development. The challenge, however, would be to ensure that human intelligence does not become a slave of artificial intelligence. He said since this is the first generation faced with this new phenomenon, it might take another one or two generations to evolve a mechanism of healthy synergy between Human Intelligence and Artificial Intelligence. He said the ideal situation would be when humans and artificial components supplement each other’s resources to accomplish Fourth Industrial Revolution Innovations.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that while the international markers indicate that 2020 will be a milestone for evaluating progress towards the 2030 agenda, in India, an important milestone would be 2022, the year that marks the completion of 75 years of independence. Several of the Government’s recent initiatives have been targeted to meet their endpoint by 2022, following which the further journey would be to boost competitiveness and aim at targets beyond.

Dr Jitendra Singh also referred to the steps taken recently by India to resort to alternative sources of energy with the twin objectives of meeting India’s growing energy needs and, at the same time, taking cognizance of environmental factors. In this regard, he said, when, for example, over 50% of global Greenhouse Gas emissions result from the cradle-to-factory journey of goods, India has already geared itself to astounding levels of innovation in all spheres.

Dr Jitendra Singh also referred to new opportunities for public-private collaboration being facilitated by the Government with the least intimidation or interference from the Government. He added that this would also serve as an incentive for small and medium enterprises to stay relevant in future scenario changes. Source: Press Release Release ID: 1517865 PIB Delhi Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions Date: January 25, 2018