Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) apologised for the difficulties faced by attendees on the opening day of the India AI Impact Summit, even as Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the Modi Government for the “utter chaos and rank mismanagement”.
Addressing a press conference at Bharat Mandapam, the summit venue, Mr. Vaishnaw said the turnout on Monday (February 16, 2026) was “phenomenal”, and assured participants that corrective steps had been taken to ensure a smoother experience in the coming days.
India aims to build consensus to harness AI for public good, contain harms: Vaishnaw
More than 70,000 people attended the summit on the first day, he said. “This is the biggest AI summit in the entire world. The response is phenomenal. The energy is palpable. We can see the organisation is very smooth now. If anybody faced any problems yesterday, we apologise for that,” Mr. Vaishnaw said. A “war room” had been set up to address grievances and operational issues, he added.
Utter chaos, says Kharge
