During an event in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in Hindi was live-translated to Tamil using Bhashini, an AI-powered Indian language-translation tool. The occasion marked the launch of the second edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam at Namo Ghat in Varanasi, the Prime Minister’s Lok Sabha constituency.
Under the umbrella of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Bhashini utilizes AI to generate language datasets and craft technology solutions based on language.
The government developed Bhashini, involving tens of thousands of individuals contributing data from their native languages in India. This collaborative effort aimed to create open-source language datasets, serving as a foundation for others to develop various tools.
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Addressing the audience at the Kashi Tamil Sangamam in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, Modi initially urged Tamil-speaking attendees to use earphones for translation before continuing his speech in Hindi. “Today, the use of new technology has taken place here through Artificial Intelligence (AI). This is a new beginning, and hopefully, it makes it easier for me to reach you,” said Modi at the event.
Within his address, Modi highlighted Hindu history and the cultural richness of Tamil Nadu and Varanasi. The Kashi Tamil Sangamam seeks to encourage travel and pilgrimage among Tamililians visiting Varanasi.
New language translation AI tools are coming into the market in order to obscure the gap between languages. With BJP’s stronghold questionable in South India due to cultural differences and language barrier, an AI tool that translates the dominant Hindi language into various other Indic languages might be a game changer for political parties willing to strengthen their foothold on the pan-Indian scene.
