UP to become a leader in deep tech, infra devpt: Yogi

Lucknow: Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that Uttar Pradesh is moving rapidly towards becoming a leader in areas such as deep tech, AI and quantum computing.Welcoming IBM's AI GovTech Innovation Centre in Lucknow, he congratulated the company and the department of IT and electronics for an MoU between the two. The CM sought IBM's assistance in the development of an AI City in Lucknow, adding that as IBM set up the country's first computer in IIT-Kanpur, UP's claim on quantum computing was also quite strong."I believe that IIT-Kanpur is ready to cooperate on the Noida campus for quantum computing. The UP govt is ready to take initiative and cooperate in this. IBM is ready," he said. The CM said that India's achievements in the field of deep tech and infrastructure over the past 11 years were remarkable. World leaders who witnessed the AI Summit in Delhi recently appreciated prime minister Narendra Modi's role in the advancement of AI, he said, highlighting the success of the Digital India programme.His own govt, he said, made provisions in the budget for a centre of excellence for robotics and another centre of excellence for drone technology. The CM said that the UP govt was using technology in every sector to help people, even on the last rung of society. Giving examples, he spoke about his govt's success in eliminating encephalitis from the state, a disease which before 2017 claimed the lives of around 50,000 children."Previous govts did not have any data on this disease. We not only collected data but also analysed it to find that the disease was thriving in areas where there was open defecation and lack of clean drinking water. We implemented projects under Swachh Bharat Mission and Jal Jivan Mission to eliminate the disease," the CM said.Another example the CM gave was bringing down school dropouts in primary schools to zero by identifying that it was a lack of toilets and clean drinking water. Once these were addressed, the dropout rate came down to zero, he said.During the event, IBM signed two MoUs with the state govt to help connect the state's long-term development goals with AI-based governance. The IBM centre will work with the IT and electronics department to develop AI-based applications in various departments and strengthen digital and AI capabilities in different departments.An AI literacy programme will be launched for students and teachers from classes VI to XII in collaboration with the directorate of school education to provide them with basic AI knowledge and practical experience and skills.IBM chairperson, president and chief executive officer Arvind Krishna said that AI would give new direction to govt's efficiency and economic competitiveness. "Govts around the world, including India, are now rapidly taking steps to move AI beyond the experimental level to implementation. Such openness in adopting responsible AI is inspiring," he said.