PIB debunked a 'China Pulse' claim that Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw called a Chinese robot Indian. Galgotias University apologized for the confusion at the AI Summit, stating an ill-informed representative spoke, and vacated their stall.
PIB Debunks False Claim
Press Information Bureau, the central government's nodal agency to disseminate information on government policies and programmes, on Wednesday said the claim by a Chinese media outlet 'China Pulse' alleging that Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw stated that the Chinese robot presented at Galgotia University is an Indian robot is false and the minister nowhere made such remarks.
"Claim: A tweet by China Pulse alleges that Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw stated that the Chinese robot presented at Galgotia University is an Indian robot. #PIBFactCheck: The Claim is false. The Union Minister has nowhere stated that the robot presented by Galgotias University is an Indian robot," PIB said in a post on X.
Claim: A tweet by China Pulse alleges that Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw stated that the Chinese robot presented at Galgotia University is an Indian robot.#PIBFactCheck: ❌ The Claim is false ▪️The Union Minister has nowhere stated that the robot presented by Galgotias… pic.twitter.com/wLGxUM9kF7 — PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) February 18, 2026
MeitY Secretary on Controversy
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Secretary S Krishnan said on Wednesday that they want genuine and actual work to be reflected in the way that people exhibit in expos such as AI Summit 2026 and a code should be followed.
Talking to the media here, he said misinformation cannot be encouraged. Answering a query on Galgotias University vacating the stall at the AI Impact Expo 2026, Krishnan said he is not getting into whether they are right or wrong and "just don't want the controversy". "We want genuine and actual work to be reflected in the way that people exhibit in expos. The idea is not to sort of use this as an opportunity in any other fashion. We don't want the controversy surrounding the exhibits presented here. So I think it's essential that a code is followed there. Misinformation cannot be encouraged. So we don't want the controversy around this. I'm not getting into whether they are right or wrong. We just don't want the controversy," he said.
Galgotias University Apologises, Vacates Stall
The Galgotias University staff and officials on Wednesday vacated their stall at the India AI Impact Summit expo, following controversy over the display of a "Chinese" robodog. According to sources, the authorities had asked Galgotias University to vacate its expo stall.
Galgotias University Registrar Nitin Kumar Gaur on Wednesday issued a press release on behalf of the University and apologized for the confusion created at the Al Summit. "We at Galgotias University, wish to apologise profusely for the confusion created at the recent Al Summit. One of our representatives, manning the pavilion, was ill-informed. She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and in her enthusiasm of being on camera, gave factually incorrect information even though she was not authorised to speak to the press," the release said.
"We request your kind understanding as there was no institutional intent to misrepresent this innovation. Galgotias University remains firmly committed to academic integrity, transparency, and responsible representation of our work. Understanding the organisers sentiment we have vacated the premises," it added.
Registrar Clarifies 'Development' Remark
Gaur earlier issued a clarification amid growing controversy over the display of a "Chinese" RoboDog at the AI Impact Summit. Speaking to ANI, Gaur explained that the confusion stemmed from the use of the words "develop" and "development." He clarified that the university did not develop the robot but had worked on its development for academic and research purposes.
"This is a jumble of two words, develop, and development. We didn't develop it. We worked on its development... We want to bring them, just like that robot was brought, and an effort was made to get students to do research on it," Gaur said. (ANI)
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