Mr. Rajeev Chandrasekhar is a prominent name in Indian Government and is currently working as the Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship of India. He is an Engineer turned Entrepreneur turned Politician who has brought his industry expertise to the Government with the viewpoint of serving and growing our Nation.
I felt like I was talking to an engineering senior. We spoke about many topics, and I am sure you will learn many things.
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About Cabinet Ministers
“We are all part of a mission to create a new India and a better India for the younger generation. When you are on a mission, so you don’t think about holidays.”
“I engage with a lot of people. An 18-year-old knows better about the internet than any Ph.D. holder. We get a good perspective from young Indians.”
PubG Ban
“Our duty for all of you is keeping you safe. There is a certain intervention, and we will lay out the criteria. We want to be sure the internet is safe, and that’s how the PubG ban is justified. There were things on PubG, the server was abroad, and data exchange happened without consent. There were no such geopolitical reasons. Likewise, even on TikTok, no one knows which data was harvested and how it was used or misused. But there are other battlefield games available. Gaming is a culture among youngsters, and we don’t want to be the grumpy uncle.”
“We want more Indian games, and in three-four years, there will be gaming startups in India. There are tremendous opportunities. There are stories that we heard during our childhood which have the potential to be gamified.”
About Crypto
“Crypto is an issue discussed tremendously. Web 3.0, crypto, and blockchain are something that we can’t fight. But without some dos and doesn’t, it can create chaos. Everyone loved crypto, but the exchange and money transfer were not governed. And because of the ban, we were saved from the meltdown. I am not against it. We should work on growing it but need to govern it.”
Reversing Brain Drain
“When Google and Meta laid off people, I had conversations with some of them, and they want to come back to India. It is clear in the tech space that India is a rising nation regarding technology. The semiconductor expert is working at Tesla, and he set up two startups in semiconductors in Bangalore. The message is clear that the center of gravity when it is about the internet or semiconductor or AI, it is India.”
“There was a time when this seemed impossible, but now it is an exciting time for India. Everything fell into place, and now everyone sees India in awe. Indians will stay when you give them a reason to stay in India.”
CAA
“When CAA happened, my daughter was in high school. She came home and was ready to fight me, and she said it was discriminating. I asked her and her friends to come in for a discussion, and they understood. CAA doesn’t say anything like some person is not allowed in India. We just said that for people who want to refugee in India from regimes known to be discriminative, we should give them the right to have safe refugees. There is no exclusion to anyone.”
“We are open to discussion, and we didn’t say anything remotely close to not letting people seek refugee. Our goal is to build a beautiful situation for the nation. But, some people want to bring up the fault line and not focus on the future.”
About PM Modi
“Modiji is aware of what is being made and shared on the internet. Modi Ji is the most loved and respected leader. No troll or meme can take away what he has received. Memes are recognition of people’s work. People will support you, but some people hate you as well.”
“Modiji is accesible. And regardless of where you come from, he will give you full attention when he is with you. He listens and has a lot of potential. And he is invested in all of our successes. He helps you to be focused, and he wants every minister to succeed. It is an honor to learn and be mentored by him.”
About AI
“We see AI as a kinetic enabler of India’s economy. AI invocation can lead the world. However, we know that AI has the potential to do bad. And I have seen that. We need to regularize it to the prism of user harm. It will let people create whatever they want on AI, but you need to make sure that it should not be harmful.”
“AI is not just an idea. AI needs datasets and computational power. Things are falling into place because now the data is available in large numbers. And it requires millions. You all should read Geius Makers, which consists story of how AI started.”
Thank you!