NEW DELHI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday launched a scathing attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for adding an “unprecedented and improper prefix” to Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva’s name while paying tributes on his birth anniversary.Mamata accused the Prime Minister of “aggressively displaying his cultural insensitivity to great figures of Bengal.”

“Yet again, our Prime Minister aggressively displays his cultural insensitivity to great figures of Bengal. Today is the janmatithi of Yugavatara (God’s incarnation in our age) Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva. While trying to hail the great saint on this occasion, our PM added an unprecedented and improper prefix to the great saint’s name, ‘Swami’!” Mamata said in a social media post on X.“As is well known, Sri Ramakrishna was widely revered as Thakur (literally, God). While his ascetic disciples constituted the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission after their Master’s demise, and those monks were then called ‘Swami’ as per Indian traditions, the Master, the Acharya, himself continued to be referred to as Thakur. The prefix ‘Swami’ was meant for his disciples in the Ramakrishna Order; but the holy trinity of the Order remained Thakur–Ma–Swamiji. Thakur is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva, Ma is Ma Sarada, and Swamiji is Swami Vivekananda,” she added.Earlier in the day, PM Modi paid tributes to Swami Ramakrishna Paramahansa on his birth anniversary and said his noble thoughts will forever remain a source of inspiration.“Humble tributes to Swami Ramakrishna Paramahansa on his birth anniversary. The way he established spirituality and meditation as a vital life force will continue to benefit humanity in every era. His noble thoughts and messages will forever remain a source of inspiration,” Modi said in a post on X in Hindi.Ramakrishna Paramahansa was born on this day in 1836.Ramakrishna Paramahansa, who served as a priest at Kolkata’s Dakshineswar Kali Temple, is known for his teachings on the harmony of religions.The Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission were brought into existence by Sri Ramakrishna and his chief disciple, Swami Vivekananda.The Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission are worldwide, non-political, non-sectarian spiritual organisations that have been engaged in various forms of humanitarian and social service activities for more than a century.

NEW DELHI: Microsoft founder Bill Gates on Thursday pulled out of AI Impact Summit and not be delvering his keynote address.Originally, Gates was supposed to be one of the primary speakers at the event. However, Gates faced flak after his name appeared in portions of Epstein files released by the US justice department.In a post on X, the Gates Foundation said the organisation will be represented by Ankur Vora, who is president of the Africa and India offices.“After careful consideration, and to ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit’s key priorities, Mr. Gates will not be delivering his keynote address. The Gates Foundation will be represented by Ankur Vora, President of Africa and India Offices, who will speak later today at the Summit,” the Gates Foundation said.“The Gates Foundation remains fully committed to our work in India to advance our shared health and development goals,” it added.Gates was featured among the tech moguls, industry leaders, policymakers, founders, and technologists listed as speakers on the official website of the AI Impact Summit, underway in the national capital from February 16–20.The clarification comes against the backdrop of recent online discussions referencing documents linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019. Gates’s name appears in portions of documents released by the US Justice Department.In one note cited in the material, Epstein allegedly claimed he had helped Gates obtain drugs “to deal with consequences of sex with Russian girls.” Gates has categorically denied the allegations. In an interview with Nine News, he described them as “absolutely absurd and completely false.”In a separate NPR interview, Melinda French Gates said her former husband’s meetings with Epstein were among the factors that contributed to the end of their 27-year marriage.Earlier, government sources had said that Gates would attend the meeting. However, a spokesperson for his foundation contradicted this, saying, “Bill Gates is attending the AI Impact Summit. He will be delivering his keynote as scheduled.”The summit website on Tuesday, however, did not show his name among the key speakers.

AI image of French president Macron with PM Modi (Image shared by Macron on X)

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday shared an AI image with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as he’s on three-day tour to India. He’s also set to attend the AI impact summit in New Delhi. The image shows the two nations’ leaders making a heart by joining their hands and smiling, with a text on it saying, “Yes, This is AI”. In the image, two white mugs with the flags of India and France can also be seen. Macron shared this image with the caption, “When friends connect, innovation follows. Ready for The AI Impact Summit!”The summit builds on earlier global initiatives, including the 2025 AI Action Summit in Paris, co-chaired by PM Modi and Macron, brings together world leaders and tech executives to discuss the future of artificial intelligence.Earlier in the day, speaking at an event at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Emmanuel Macron said India and France are aligned on the future of artificial intelligence, stressing the need to avoid overreliance on dominant global models. “I think it is important that this innovation becomes a very important part of our countries. I believe we share the same objective in India and France, and in Europe — that we do not want to be totally dependent on the US and Chinese models. We believe we need our own balanced model, and we want to be part of the solution. We want our players to be part of the solution as well,” he said.Macron described the ongoing India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi as crucial for advancing responsible and development-focused AI. Referring to earlier global discussions, he said the dialogue must continue to ensure innovation benefits societies broadly.India is hosting the summit from February 16 to 20, structured around three pillars — People, Planet, and Progress. The Prime Minister inaugurated the India AI Impact Expo 2026 at Bharat Mandapam earlier this week.Billed as the first major global AI gathering in the Global South, the summit has drawn over 20 Heads of State, dozens of ministers, and hundreds of AI leaders. Bringing together policymakers, industry, innovators, and academia, the event aims to translate global AI discussions into practical development outcomes under the IndiaAI Mission and the Digital India initiative.The Prime Minister is set to deliver the inaugural address on February 19, outlining India’s vision for inclusive, trusted, and development-oriented artificial intelligence.

New Delhi: After hosting French President Emmanuel Macron in Mumbai, PM Modi held bilateral meetings on Wednesday with leaders of Spain, Finland, Estonia, Croatia and Serbia, looking to further deepen cooperation in technology, innovation, security and defence with Europe, which is participating in strength in the ongoing AI Impact Summit. With 26 countries officially represented, this is the largest-ever presence of European countries at a technology-based event in India, according to official sources.In the official talks, EU leaders/members conveyed their unanimous support for early implementation of the India-EU FTA. They are also learned to have pledged support for its early ratification in the European Council and European Parliament.“They are all keen to enhance trading ties with India taking advantage of the FTA, creating new opportunities and jobs for people,” said a govt source.At Modi’s meeting with Spainish PM Pedro Sanchez, the two endorsed ongoing defence cooperation, welcoming progress in Tata-Airbus collaboration for C-295 transport aircraft final assembly line in Vadodara and stressing the importance of defence industrial collaboration based on co-development and co-production. Sanchez highlighted the importance of the AI Summit and expressed confidence that its outcomes would contribute meaningfully to shaping global AI governance, while backing closer India-Spain cooperation to leverage AI’s potential for inclusive development and societal benefit.“They reiterated their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and emphasised the need for strengthened international cooperation to combat terrorism,” said a govt readout, adding that both PMs hailed the India-EU FTA as a major milestone that would help unlock immense trade and investment potential.Modiis expected to meet leaders from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Slovak Republic and Liechtenstein over the next two days.For India, a solid European presence was the essential ingredient for a successful AI summit, as Europe remains a hub of cutting-edge AI innovation, digital governance and responsible AI frameworks.Govt officials pointed out that EU plays a prominent role in setting global norms, including for AI, and is also the first bloc globally to enact comprehensive AI legislation. While France is playing a key role in AI governance and applications and UK had organised the first AI summit in 2023, the Netherlands and Belgium host critical companies in the semiconductor supply chain like ASML and IMEC, respectively.India working closely with European nations to expand AI-led growth: Official | page 14While Germany is Europe’s leading semiconductor hub, the sources said Estonia, too, is a global leader in artificial intelligence, ranking sixth worldwide for AI startups. “India is working closely with several European countries to learn from one another and expand AI-led growth and development,” said an official.Modi and Finland Prime Minister Petteri Orpo called for doubling bilateral trade and greater technology collaboration, including in co-development of quantum and 6G, renewables, circular economy and defence, as they agreed that India-EU FTA will serve as a catalyst for shared progress and prosperity. In his meeting with Modi, Croatian PM Andrej Plenkovic, too, called for early implementation of India-FTA to boost bilateral trade.“In recent diplomatic engagements, Europe has expressed an unambiguous vote of confidence in the vitality of India-Europe Strategic Partnership, anchored in AI, digital innovation, strategic cooperation, economic growth and shared global priorities,” said an official.India working closely with European nations to expand AI-led growth: Official While Germany is Europe’s leading semiconductor hub, the sources said Estonia, too, is a global leader in artificial intelligence, ranking sixth worldwide for AI startups. “India is working closely with several European countries to learn from one another and expand AI-led growth and development,” said an official. Modi and Finland Prime Minister Petteri Orpo called for doubling bilateral trade and greater technology collaboration, including in co-development of quantum and 6G, renewables, circular economy and defence, as they agreed that India-EU FTA will serve as a catalyst for shared progress and prosperity. In his meeting with Modi, Croatian PM Andrej Plenkovic, too, called for early implementation of India-FTA to boost bilateral trade. “In recent diplomatic engagements, Europe has expressed an unambiguous vote of confidence in the vitality of India-Europe Strategic Partnership, anchored in AI, digital innovation, strategic cooperation, economic growth and shared global priorities,” said an official.