Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) apologised for the difficulties confronted by attendees on the opening day of the India AI Influence Summit, at the same time as Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the Modi Authorities for the “utter chaos and rank mismanagement”.
Addressing a press convention at Bharat Mandapam, the summit venue, Mr. Vaishnaw stated the turnout on Monday (February 16, 2026) was “phenomenal”, and warranted individuals that corrective steps had been taken to make sure a smoother expertise within the coming days.
Greater than 70,000 individuals attended the summit on the primary day, he stated. “That is the largest AI summit in all the world. The response is phenomenal. The power is palpable. We will see the organisation could be very easy now. If anyone confronted any issues yesterday, we apologise for that,” Mr. Vaishnaw stated. A “struggle room” had been set as much as tackle grievances and operational points, he added.
Utter chaos, says Kharge
Earlier, in a submit on X, Mr. Kharge stated that what may have been a world showcase of India’s digital capabilities had changed into “utter chaos” resulting from mismanagement.
“What may have been a showpiece AI Summit for all the world demonstrating the digital & AI capabilities of India, has reportedly changed into utter chaos and rank mismanagement by this “PR hungry” authorities!” Mr. Kharge stated on X.
He claimed that founders, exhibitors and guests confronted misery due to safety restrictions forward of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s go to (for the inauguration), and alleged that fundamental services resembling meals and water have been missing. He additionally cited reviews of stolen merchandise, failed digital methods, and restrictions on private digital units.
“This can be very unlucky that our nation has to undergo this world embarrassment because of the incompetence of our personal authorities. Maybe the Modi Authorities ought to study from the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS), which is an annual characteristic in easily organising such large-scale digital & tech congregations,” the Congress chief posted.
The opening day of the summit noticed packed halls, lengthy queues and confusion over entry directions, with cell information connectivity additionally proving unreliable on the venue. Heavy footfall led to overlapping safety checks and the momentary evacuation of some exhibitor stalls forward of the Prime Minister’s go to to the expo.
‘AI wearables stolen’
Amid the disruption, some individuals reported misplaced or stolen objects. Dhananjay Yadav, CEO of NeoSapien, stated on X that safety personnel requested exhibitors to vacate their stalls forward of the Prime Minister’s go to and warranted them their belongings can be protected. He later claimed that among the firm’s AI wearables have been stolen.
“Take into consideration this: We paid for flights, lodging, logistics and even the sales space. Solely to see our wearables disappear inside a high-security zone. If solely safety and official entourage had entry, how did this occur? That is extraordinarily disappointing,” Mr. Yadav wrote.
Punit Jain, founding father of Reskill, initially criticised the preparations, saying exhibitors and delegates have been left outdoors with out water or readability on entry.
“Exhibitors, delegates, start-up founders have been left outdoors. No water. No readability. The media reveals celebration. Floor actuality was chaos. If entry was restricted to pick out high-value visitors, simply say it upfront. Don’t mobilize the ecosystem after which displace them. This isn’t how we construct India’s AI future,” Mr. Jain wrote on X on Monday (February 16, 2026).
Nevertheless, he acknowledged that coordination improved considerably on Tuesday (February 17, 2026), the second day of the summit.
Entrepreneur Priyanshu Ratnakar additionally pointed to lengthy queues, exhibitors being locked out of stalls, patchy connectivity and repeated registration glitches, calling the expertise “optics over execution”.
Organisers stated corrective measures have been taken by way of the day to ease congestion and enhance coordination, and warranted individuals that the remaining days of the summit would run extra easily. The summit will conclude on February 20.
(With PTI inputs)
Revealed – February 17, 2026 11:26 pm IST
