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Hindustan Times
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
'Majority people' want to be multilingual, should be given fair chance: Pawan Kalyan
Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Tuesday said that the "majority of the people" are thinking that they want to be multilingual and should be given a fair chance. Stating that English has become his language of thought, the Janasena founder expressed sadness that he could not find the same in Hindi or Kannada or Marathi.(@APDeputyCMO) The actor-politician claimed that "political leaders should widen their minds and broaden their horizon". "Majority of the people think they want to be multilinguistic (multilingual). Let us give them a fair chance and a fair opportunity," Kalyan told PTI Videos. Stating that English has become his language of thought, the Janasena founder expressed sadness that he could not find the same in Hindi or Kannada or Marathi. "My mother tongue is not Hindi. My mother tongue is not English. Sometimes I feel sad that my thinking language has become English or Telugu. Telugu is a natural way to think, but I could adopt English as a thinking language," he said. Backing his linguistic campaign, the Deputy Chief Minister said, "There is nothing wrong in a world where we are interacting with multiculturalism as multilingual skills are needed". Further, he highlighted that political leaders should think of the 'oncoming generations' (future generations) and make some space for them, hinting at multilingualism.
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Rate cuts by RBI not magic bullet to propel investments: Raghuram Rajan
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said repo rate cuts by the Reserve Bank in recent times are not a "magic bullet" that will necessarily propel investments, as several other factors play a part in boosting the economy. Rajan further said interest rates, at this point, are not overly high and the impact of rate cuts announced by the RBI will take time to play out. "And as you correctly point out, (high) interest rates were an argument (earlier), but I do not think that can any longer be an argument. "I do not think that necessarily this (rate cuts by RBI) will be a magic bullet to propel investments," Rajan told PTI Videos. On June 6, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra-headed six-member monetary policy committee reduced the benchmark short-term lending rate by 50 basis points, taking the total reduction to 100 bps in quick succession, besides a change in the policy stance to neutral from accommodative and liquidity infusion measures. Rajan was asked whether repo rate cuts announced by the RBI in recent times will finally nudge corporates to increase their investment plans. The eminent economist said: "Some of the other factors, including creating more of a transparent sort of playing field and creating more competition in a number of sectors, will urge industry to be less complacent and more focused on investing to preserve their advantage and their lead". "So, I do not think it is just interest rates. I think it is a combination of I hope that more corporate investment is forthcoming." He said that Indian industries have not seemed to be investing after the massive investment expansion before the global financial crisis. "They (Indian industries) have become much more circumspect, and they can not keep saying this is the condition of the domestic economy -- earlier, they were saying the lower middle class is not spending, rural areas are not spending. "Now it is flipped over. It is the upper middle class which is not spending," Rajan, currently a professor of finance at Chicago Booth, said. Recent data from the Ministry of Statistics indicated that the share of private sector investment in India has dropped to 11-year lows. "And as you correctly point out, interest rates were an argument, but I do not think that can any longer be an argument," he said. In FY24, the private sector's share in gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) -- a key measure of investment in physical assets -- dropped to 32.4 per cent. Asked if there is any room for the RBI for further rate cuts as CPI inflation has fallen to 2.1 per cent in June, Rajan said he does not like to comment on the central bank's policy. "Let me just say that we are in a very comfortable situation as far as inflation goes, and to some extent, the tariffs on imports in industrial countries, which may sort of propagate from the US to other countries, tend to be disinflationary for countries that export," he said. Rajan said he would not pay as much attention to headline inflation, even though the headline inflation is what the RBI is targeting. "But I would also take a look at core inflation at such times, just to satisfy myself that the disinflationary impulse is across the board. "And if you look at core inflation, it is somewhat higher than the headline number," he noted. CPI headline inflation was 2.10 per cent in June 2025, and it is the lowest year-on-year inflation after January 2019. Crude oil prices are currently under control. Food inflation in June 2025 was -1.06 per cent. Assuming a normal monsoon, the RBI projected inflation at 3.7 per cent for FY26. While pointing out that core inflation is at a comfortable level, Rajan said, "Interest rates are not at this point overly high after the rate cuts that RBI has made, and we will have to wait for some more time to see how things play out". Responding to a question on surge in net outward foreign direct investment (FDI), he said FDI is complicated. "It is not just people putting sort of money on the ground in greenfield projects." "Sometimes you know what they take out in terms of dividends, etc, counts negatively on FDI I do worry that. "Given the sort of push in a number of firms for an alternative to China plus one strategy, we should be getting much more of that kind of FDI," he said. And of course, Rajan said India should be getting FDI, which seeks to find a place with good logistics but reasonable workers, much like some of the southern states are attracting that kind of FDI.
NDTV
2 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
Coastal Charm To Tech Ambition: Goa Rolls Out AI Mission 2027
Panaji: The Pramod Sawant government has rolled out Goa AI Mission 2027, a visionary roadmap to build an inclusive and future-ready Artificial Intelligence ecosystem, officials said. The mission, a bold leap from Goa's laid-back coastal charm to cutting-edge tech ambition, aims to empower people, enhance governance and spark innovation across sectors, placing the state firmly on the digital transformation map, they said. In a recently held meeting, Chief Minister Sawant and state Information Technology Minister Rohan Khaunte appealed to stakeholders to work towards drafting the AI Mission 2027, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision. Nearly 350 Information Technology companies and startups are operating in Goa, as per data from the IT department. Goa Information and Technology Director Kabir Shirgaonkar told PTI Videos that the state government's AI mission is derived from the Centre's ambitious India AI Mission. "We intend to meet various objectives through this mission, and one of them is create an inclusive and future-friendly AI ecosystem to empower citizens, enhance governance and support innovation across sectors," he said. The government's predominant focus under the Goa AI Mission 2027 would be on setting up Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) to increase compute capacity, Shirgaonkar said. "There's also the concept of an AI Coach. When talking about AI, datasets are very important. The Government of Goa will play an active role in preparing datasets, as you all know, the government possesses a vast amount of data, and these datasets will be critical when working with AI," he said. Shirgaonkar said the ethical use of AI will also be a major focus area as the Goa government moves forward. "Some of the major highlights of the Goa AI Mission include the formulation of a Goa AI Policy," he said, adding the AI Advisory Council has already been formulated. "The AI Advisory Council, a multi-stakeholder body, aims to provide strategic direction and ensure consistent implementation across domains. So, the first step is the formation of the council, followed by drafting of the Goa AI Policy," he explained. Shirgaonkar further said the focus will also include AI education, the setting up of Goa AI Labs, and the development of a Konkani Large Language Model (LLM). "As you know, language models are essential, and developing a Konkani LLM will be one of our key priorities. We aim to use AI to preserve and promote Goa's cultural and linguistic heritage through this locally built LLM in Konkani," he said. Specifically, the Goa AI Mission will rest on four core pillars -- skilling, startups and companies, capital, and government and infrastructure, the official said. "Under the 'skilling' pillar, we will target colleges and schools to ensure that AI education is integrated at all levels so that our future generation is AI-ready," he said. Amarsh Chaturvedi, co-founder of Neural Private Ltd in Panaji, said his is an AI first startup, working with enterprises to help scale their AI initiators with ease and comfort. "We are also glad to be a part of the AI state mission in Goa, which is one of the pioneering initiatives in the country," he added. Goa is one of the "very, very few states in the country" which is looking at AI and making the state ready for the future in technology, Chaturvedi said. He said the Goa AI Mission 2027 also aims at bringing together academia, industry, startups and the government to fulfil multiple objectives. "The first one being making the population of Goa AI ready, and this also entails skilling and reskilling people to work with AI, not just as users, but also creators," he said. The mission also includes building the core infrastructure to carry out foundational research, not just physical infrastructure, but digital infrastructure that could entail collaboration of academia in Goa with universities elsewhere in the world, Chaturvedi said. "So, from a holistic perspective, the intent is right and the steps that are being planned to undertake and fulfil the objectives of this mission are also in the right place," he added. Milind Prabhu, CEO of Genora Infotech Pvt Ltd, Goa, said he was very happy to hear about the state government's initiative. It is a great initiative as Goa is a preferred place for innovative work to be done and AI is the next tech innovation that is happening, he said. "So, it's a great thing that we are focusing on it," Prabhu added.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Congress, other parties criticizing new Waqf law want to keep Muslims as vote bank: Kiren Rijiju
Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju accuses Congress and other parties of exploiting Muslims as a vote bank by opposing the Waqf (Amendment) Act. He defends the Act, emphasizing its aim to empower the Muslim community and ensure proper management of Waqf properties for their welfare. Rijiju asserts the government's commitment to justice for all, dismissing claims of unconstitutionality. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has alleged that the basic purpose of the Congress and some other parties criticizing the Waqf (Amendment) Act is to keep Muslims as their vote bank, and asserted that the Modi government believes in "appeasement to none, justice to all".With the Supreme Court in May reserving interim orders on three key issues after hearing both sides in the Waqf case, Rijiju said he will not make any preemptive statement right now with regard to the matter which is pending in the apex court."But let us make one thing very clear. The job of Parliament is to make laws. The Supreme Court can definitely interpret it in the right way," Rijiju told PTI Videos in an interview."We are very confident that whatever we have done is as per law and as per the provisions and spirit of the Constitution. I am very confident that the role of Parliament will not be taken away," he AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi 's criticism of the new Waqf law, Rijiju said he doesn't want to criticize Owaisi for his opposition to the Waqf (Amendment) Act because he made the remarks against the legislation out of compulsion."The main problem is what I tell you. Some of these leaders, including the Congress party, have treated the Muslims as a vote bank. When you start taking and making a community as a vote bank, then you become irrational."Then you put them into one bracket, that good or bad doesn't matter, they will all be rhetorical," the minister those who criticized the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, are only trying to keep the Muslims poor and ensure that they remain as their vote bank."Our thinking is opposite to that. Ours is appeasement to none, justice to all," Rijiju are many within the Muslim community, lots of groups, women, children and backward communities who have not gotten any benefit out of the Waqf properties, the minister told PTI on Friday."So, India's Waqf properties you know very well are the highest number of Waqf properties in the world. More than 9,70,000 Waqf properties are there which must be put into use for the purpose for which those properties were created," Rijiju pointed out that under the provisions of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, "we are to handle through the mutawallis and the waqf boards proper management for the welfare of the Muslim community, especially the poor.""These (Congress and some other leaders) people know that if the Muslim community becomes better, prosperous then they will be more educated, have more understanding and they will not be the main vote bank for anybody," Rijiju said."So, the basic purpose of Congress and some of the other leaders criticizing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill is to make Muslims as their vote bank and to keep them poor all the time," he said."Otherwise, tell me one reason why they should oppose the Waqf (Amendment) Bill? On a rational basis, they cannot," he the Collector being given more powers under the new law, Rijiju said, "We are making the rules, now it's in the final stage. There is no final authority to any officer. It is only responsibility being given to certain officers. If there are disputes between the government lands and the private, the collector has to decide, but the appeal has to be made to an officer which is higher than the collector. Otherwise, what is the job of the collectors? Collectors are there for revenue purposes primarily.""So, if you don't trust collectors, then who do you trust?" he its observation on the presumption of constitutionality in favour of the law, the Supreme Court in May reserved interim orders on three key issues after hearing both sides in the waqf Centre has strongly defended the Act, saying waqf by its very nature was a secular concept and can't be stayed given the presumption of constitutionality in its though waqf was an Islamic concept, it was not an essential part of Waqf (Amendment) Act was passed by Parliament in April and subsequently came into force through a government the BJP-led NDA had rallied in support of the Bill, the opposition INDIA bloc united in opposing Muslim bodies and opposition MPs had moved the Supreme Court against the law, which the ruling alliance has described as a force for transparency and empowerment of backward Muslims and women from the community. The Opposition has slammed it as unconstitutional and claimed that it infringes on the rights of Muslims.
The Print
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Print
Bilal Lone takes dig at brother Sajjad, joins mainstream to reclaim father's legacy
Wishing Sajjad Lone all the best in his future endeavours, Bilal Lone sought to convey a clear message to him, saying, 'Please do politics on your own strength and not exploit the ideology' of their late father. Lone's comments are seen as a veiled critique of his brother, MLA Sajjad Lone, who has been in mainstream politics for years. In an interview with the PTI Videos, Bilal Lone said that he and his brother have been on 'different political paths since 2002'. Srinagar, Jul 19 (PTI) Former separatist leader Bilal Gani Lone has entered the political mainstream, saying his primary motivation is to correctly represent the 'true legacy' of his late father, Abdul Gani Lone, which he claims has been misrepresented even 'within the family'. He said the senior Lone stood for 'non-violence' and the 'dignity of his people' and that these principles will remain at the core of his own politics. He said the People's Conference, the party founded by his father, 'died on 21 May 2002' — the day of his father's martyrdom. He vowed to pursue an 'organic' path, building his politics 'on his own strength' and steering clear of the 'politics of exploitation'. Abdul Gani Lone, a votary for a dialogue, was killed by Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists on May 21, 2002, in downtown Srinagar, where he had gone to mark the death anniversary of Mirwaiz Maulvi Farooq. Lone asserted that he has no grand political vision but a simple vow to 'speak the truth', and stressed he is not in the race for any position like chief minister or MLA but is driven by a desire to 'pay back' his people. 'If the door of my house closes because of the truth, I have no problem with that,' he said, describing his new political journey as a collective effort moving at a 'snail's pace' to regain trust. Lone said that while he and his former Hurriyat colleagues 'could not do anything' for the people, his ties with Mirwaiz Umar Farooq remain strong. He called the Mirwaiz a leader of a 'very big stature' with a significant role to play, adding that he would be willing to follow him if he took a constructive political path. Bilal Lone said his decision to shift political paths is to save the youth, whom he described as the 'biggest casualty of the conflict' and added that 'violence has given us nothing'. 'Violence ne yahan par barbaadi hi laayi hai (violence has only brought disaster)' and 'finished generations' and left Kashmiris 'at the receiving end', he said. His new political narrative will go beyond the traditional focus on roads, power, and water. He plans to address the future of the new generation by talking about their education, health facilities and business prospects. Bilal Lone also said that reconciliation between Kashmiri Muslims and Pandits is essential, as the 'biggest casualty' in the Valley has been trust between the two communities. He stressed that a fresh start is necessary for the two communities. 'Kashmiri Muslims need to understand that if a Kashmiri Pandit lives in our neighbourhood, that is my duty to safeguard him, not the state,' he said while emphasising the need for sincerity and a frank conversation about past wrongs between the two communities. 'Whatever wrong has been done in the past… let us address those people. Let us go and talk to them,' he said, suggesting that if a mistake was made, an apology should be offered. PTI SKL RT RT This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
