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Mohandas Pai criticises omission of Bengaluru from AI Centres of Excellence; Zoho’s Sridhar Vembu responds

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Former Infosys board member Mohandas Pai has criticized the government's decision to exclude Bengaluru, known as India's technology capital, from the list of locations for the proposed AI Centres of Excellence. The government plans to establish three AI CoEs focusing on healthcare, agriculture, and sustainable cities, with IIT Delhi, AIIMS, IIT Ropar, and IIT Kanpur leading the respective centers. Pai argues that overlooking Bengaluru disregards the city's significant contributions to the tech industry and its potential for driving AI innovation. However, Sridhar Vembu, CEO of Zoho Corporation, defended the government's decision, stating that the committee responsible for selecting the locations made the decision independently and without any government directives.