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Modi is good at marketing himself, but won't win the election'

[email protected] (RATNADIP CHOUDHURY, TEHELKA.COM)
March 30, 2014
One of the states that the BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi is eyeing keenly is Assam, where the Congress has been in power since 2001. The ruling party is leaving no stone unturned to make sure that the Modi factor proves to be irrelevant in the General Election. In an interview with Ratnadip Choudhury, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi says that Modi is good at marketing himself, but that won't prove enough for him to win the election.

Chief_Minister_Tarun_Gogoi

There seems to be a national trend against the Congress and a wave in favour of Modi, who has aggressively attacked the UPA government on all fronts. Where has the Congress gone wrong?

Yes, I agree that there is resentment, but I think the Congress' fortunes will revive. In fact, it's picking up. At the national level, the Congress started the campaign late. Had we started six months earlier, the result would have been better then what we will achieve. Regardless, I believe the trends would be proved wrong. There is no question of being soft on Modi. In fact, I am one of the seniormost Congress leaders in the country who is attacking Modi left and right, exposing him to the people. The Modi wave will not touch Assam, at least.

The BJP is looking to make inroads in Assam and the party says there is a Modi wave blowing across the country. How do you plan to insulate Assam from it?

Unlike in other parts of the country, the Modi wave will not touch Assam. The people of Assam have a different culture.

Modi talks about his Gujarat development model. In fact, my development model is much better than his. Modi could take up development work only when the UPA government was in power at the Centre. The UPA has helped every state, irrespective of the party in power.

The Modi wave is a media creation. If there is indeed a wave, why does he need to tour so much, burn so much money for promoting himself as the face of the BJP? It is all propaganda. Modi is good at marketing, but you cannot win elections with just that.

Because of our performance, my government has been better than any other in Assam. The UPA has helped me take up many development projects. I don't bother how many rallies Modi addresses in Assam. I know for sure that the people will reject his brand of self-centered politics.

There are complaints that despite being a Rajya Sabha member from Assam, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has not done enough for the state. Several important projects of national importance remain unfinished…

Who is saying that the prime minister did nothing for Assam? I have facts that will make it clear that when Manmohan Singh was in power, Assam received plenty of Central attention. He has done whatever is possible for the state. The growth rate is good. I have facts to prove that the UPA has done more for Assam and the Northeast than the NDA regime. I will publish a white paper on this so that the people know who is working for them.

The Opposition blames you for not being able to handle ethnic conflicts, flood and erosion, rhino killings, illegal immigration from Bangladesh and the loss of agricultural land. Even in its poll campaign, the Congress is non-committal on these issues…

I won't disagree that all these contentious issues remain and there have been shortcomings on our part to tackle them. But, by and large, peace has returned to Assam. Now, you can travel safely to any place. The growth rate is one of the best in the country. Without peace, can there be development? I am not saying that insurgency has been done away with. We have been able to check it to a large extent. If you talk about the Kokrajhar riots, I brought it under control within 60 hours. Lakhs of people had to flee, but within a year, we rehabilitated them. Only a few hundred remain in camps. We pressed the army into action immediately. Look at how Modi handled the Gujarat riots. Why didn't he use the army? Why did he never refer the riot cases to the CBI on his own? He has been exposed. I am not trying to escape.

So, you mean to say that whatever your government has done to tackle the illegal influx of migrants from Bangladesh has been good enough?

It's a major issue but it is not the main issue. Unemployment is a far bigger issue. The Opposition parties always raise this issue during election time because they cannot challenge my government on other issues. It is not to say that we are on a backfoot. The population growth in Assam is now lower than the national average. What does that indicate? It means the issue of illegal migrants has been taken care of. The BJP has been raising this issue for years. What did the party do when the NDA was in power? They forgot the issue.

With the growth of the BJP and Muslim-dominated AIUDF, it is all but certain that votes in Assam will get polarised on religious lines. Modi has already played the Hindutva card by saying that Hindus who fled other countries should be given asylum in India. Even you had tried the same by supporting asylum for those who fled Bangladesh due to religious persecution. Isn't your stand communal?

The media has tried to draw some parallels, which are incorrect. In spite of the attempts made by the BJP and the AIUDF, Assam is not a communally divided society. No one can divide Assam. Modi is only talking about one group — the Hindus. But what I said was different. Our stand is that irrespective of religion, if it's proved that anybody had to flee due to political or religious persecution after Partition, their case should been seen with sympathy on humanitarian grounds. That person can be of any religion — Hindu, Buddhist or even Muslim. It's true that such cases are higher among the Hindus, but I am not talking only about Hindus like Modi is doing.

Critics often say that the Congress is its own enemy. After the 2011 Assembly polls, the media had reported about a rebellion against your leadership. Why are such things happening in Assam, where the party is on a strong footing?

There is no dissidence. The election results will show that the Congress is united. In the Guwahati municipal polls, everyone predicted that we would lose, but we won. The Congress is a big family. Some grievances are bound to arise. Till date, nobody — MLA or minister — has officially demanded my removal. There are differences on the issue of allotting tickets for the polls, but we know how to handle them. After me, there will be new leaders. Who knew that Rajiv Gandhi will be such a good leader or that Sonia Gandhi would lead the party some day. The party is bigger than any individual.

Is the Congress extending dynasty politics in Assam by giving tickets to the sons and daughters of politicians, including your son Gaurav. Will the new faces deliver?

Manas Bora, the son of Social Welfare Minister Akon Bora, won the party's internal primaries; Sushmita, the daughter of former Union minister Santoshmohan Dev, is an MLA and a very educated lady. My son Gaurav was working for an NGO. He is an engineer and was educated in the West… they are all good candidates in their own capacity and ideally don't need their parents' identity to prove themselves. Even if they come from a political dynasty, they have to get elected. Gaurav will not be able to win an election only because he is my son. The identity will definitely help him, but he has to create a niche for himself. I am hopeful that all the new faces will win. Out of 14 seats in Assam, we will win no less than 10. Modi will be proved wrong in Assam.

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Agencies
January 7,2020

Washington, Jan 7: Facebook will ban deepfake videos ahead of the US elections but the new policy will still allow heavily edited clips so long as they are parody or satire, the social media giant said Tuesday.

Deepfake videos are hyper-realistic doctored clips made using artificial intelligence or programs that have been designed to accurately fake real human movements.

In a blog published following a Washington Post report, Facebook said it would begin removing clips that were edited--beyond for clarity and quality--in ways that "aren't apparent to an average person" and could mislead people.

Clips would be removed if they were "the product of artificial intelligence or machine learning that merges, replaces or superimposes content onto a video, making it appear to be authentic," the statement from Facebook vice-president Monika Bickert said.

However, the statement added: "This policy does not extend to content that is parody or satire, or video that has been edited solely to omit or change the order of words."

US media noted the new guidelines would not cover videos such as the 2019 viral clip -- which was not a deepfake -- of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that appeared to show her slurring her words.

Facebook also gave no indication on the number of people assigned to identify and take down the offending videos, but said videos failing to meet its usual guidelines would be removed, and those flagged clips would be reviewed by teams of third-party fact-checkers -- among them AFP.

The news agency has been paid by the social media giant to fact-check posts across 30 countries and 10 languages as part of a program starting in December 2016, and including more than 60 organisations.

Content labeled "false" is not always removed from newsfeeds but is downgraded so fewer people see it -- alongside a warning explaining why the post is misleading.

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Agencies
July 25,2020

In a study conducted in 117 countries, researchers have found that the world is experiencing the most dramatic reduction in the seismic noise (the hum of vibrations in the planet's crust) in recorded history due to global COVID-19 lockdowns.

Measured by instruments called seismometers, seismic noise is caused by vibrations within the Earth, which travel like waves and the waves can be triggered by earthquakes, volcanoes, and bombs - but also by daily human activity like travel and industry.

This quiet period was likely caused by the total global effect of social distancing measures, closure of services and industry, and drops in tourism and travel, the study published in the journal Science, reported.

The new research, led by the Royal Observatory of Belgium and five other institutions around the world including Imperial College London (ICL), showed that the dampening of 'seismic noise' caused by humans was more pronounced in more densely populated areas.

"Our study uniquely highlights just how much human activities impact the solid Earth, and could let us see more clearly than ever what differentiates human and natural noise," said study co-author Stephen Hicks from ICL in the UK.

For the findings, the research team looked at seismic data from a global network of 268 seismic stations in 117 countries and found significant noise reductions compared to before any lockdown at 185 of those stations.

Researchers tracked the 'wave' of quietening between March and May as worldwide lockdown measures took hold.

The largest drops in vibrations were seen in the most densely populated areas, like Singapore and New York City, but drops were also seen in remote areas like Germany's the Black Forest and Rundu in Namibia.

Citizen-owned seismometers, which tend to measure more localised noise, noted large drops around universities and schools around Cornwall, UK and Boston, US - a drop in noise 20 per cent larger than seen during school holidays.

The findings showed that countries like Barbados, where lockdown coincided with the tourist season, saw a 50 per cent decrease in noise.

"The changes have also given us the opportunity to listen in to the Earth's natural vibrations without the distortions of human input," the study authors wrote.

Earlier in April, a study published in the journal Nature, reported at least a 30 per cent reduction in that amount of ambient human noise since lockdown began in Belgium.

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Agencies
June 12,2020

New Delhi, Jun 12: The Supreme Court on Friday asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to convene a meeting of the Finance Ministry and RBI officials over the weekend to decide whether interest incurred on EMIs during the moratorium period can be charged by banks.

A bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M.R. Shah queried Mehta as the court was concerned since the Centre has deferred loan for three months.

"Then how can interest of these 3 months be added?" the apex bench asked. Mehta replied: "I need to sit down with the RBI officials and have a meeting."

SBI's counsel, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, intervened during the proceedings and said "all banks are of the view that interest cannot be waived for a six month EMI moratorium period".

"We need to discuss it with the RBI," insisted Rohatgi.

Justice Bhushan then asked Mehta to convene a meeting of the RBI and Finance Ministry officials over the weekend, and listed the matter for further hearing on June 17.

The top court, during the hearing, indicated that it was not considering a complete waiver of interest but was only concerned that postponement of interest shouldn't accrue further interest on it.

After the RBI said the waiver of interest charges on EMIs during moratorium will lead to loss of 1 per cent of the nation's GDP, the top court had earlier asked the Finance Ministry to reply, whether the interest could be waived or it would continue during the moratorium period.

The top court said these are not normal times, and it is a serious issue, as on one hand moratorium is granted and then, the interest is charged on loans during this period.

"There are two issues in this (matter). No interest during the moratorium period and no interest on interest," said Justice Bhushan. The observation from the bench came on a petition by Gajendra Sharma, in which he sought a direction to declare portion of the RBI's March 27 notification as ultra vires to the extent it charged interest on the loan amount during the moratorium period.

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