Wrong to Mock Modi’s Teleprompter Gaffe
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s teleprompter gaffe at the World Economic Forum where Modi seemingly struggled to deliver his speech after the teleprompter stopped working is being trolled on social media. These trolls contend that the Prime Minister cannot make a speech without looking at the teleprompter, which according to them is a weakness, and are using this incident to attack Modi. When the repeated blunders that Modi has made so far are before us, how right is it to project the teleprompter gaffe as a major problem and thereby the country’s failure? Adopting the Sangh Parivar’s strategy of repeating a lie till it becomes the truth would be akin to looking away from the real issues. Public discourse should be about presenting the real issues that the country is facing, not mocking at the Prime Minister’s colour, language, or his eloquence or lack of it.
First, the veracity of the fact that Modi stopped his speech midway due to the glitch in the teleprompter needs to be examined. Initially, when the Prime Minister was struggling for words people, assumed that the teleprompter stopped working and several websites were quick to share the videos. But the reality was something different. Modi had apparently stopped speaking not because of the teleprompter but because the event organizers had asked him to stop as the audience was unable to hear him that caused him to stutter a bit. But the initial misconception spread like wildfire in social media. True, if an incident like this had occurred when Dr Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister, Sangh Parivar’s karyakarthas and trolls would have celebrated it. Even if we were to assume that Modi stammered due to the teleprompter’s malfunctioning, then the criticism should be directed against the quality of the teleprompter and the irresponsibility of the organizers, not against the Prime Minister.
Moreover, the question is whether it is absolutely necessary that a Prime Minister must be eloquent. These days, it appears that the more eloquent a leader is, the more dangerous it is to the country. Prime Minister Modi is an example. Good speakers mesmerize people through their words. The country has rarely found good, eloquent speakers who are also seasoned politicians. Of these, Jawaharlal Nehru stands out. With his words and programmes, Nehru contributed immensely not only to the country but also to the Third World. At the same time, although Manmohan Singh was not a great orator, the entire world respected his words as he is one of the tallest economists in the world. Prime Minister Modi has so far entertained people through his speeches but Modi’s bhakths are coming to know where the country has reached today. That Modi cannot deliver a speech without a teleprompter is not the issue at all. What needs to be discussed is whether, regardless of the presence of the teleprompter, his speeches have a vision. In the entire teleprompter fiasco, the lies that Modi delivered at the World Economic Forum about the state of the country were not discussed at all.
More than the appropriateness of a Prime Minister using a teleprompter, the compulsory use of a teleprompter by someone occupying a top position such as the Prime Minister’s office must be emphasised. Speaking from such a responsible position, it is important to ensure that words are used carefully as otherwise, words that are misunderstood or misconstrued could lead to dangerous situations. It is therefore important that the Prime Minister is well aware of what he is talking about, and he uses the help of different media to read his speeches. This is a good time to note that Modi’s blind followers are responsible for pushing him to this situation. They projected Modi’s speeches as the greatest gifts for the country instead of focusing on his administration. The behaviour of his followers is also responsible for the discussions around the teleprompter. It is high time Modi bhakths who are always focusing on the ‘positive energies’ in his speeches realize that the Prime Minister’s job is not only to deliver speeches but also to take the country on the path of development and start critiquing Modi’s administration.
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Texas halts H-1B visas at state universities, agencies; to affect Indians
Houston (US) (PTI): Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies and public universities to immediately halt new H-1B visa petitions, tightening hiring rules at taxpayer-funded institutions, a step likely to impact Indian professionals.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 2027.
The directive issued on Tuesday said that the state agencies and public universities must stop filing new petitions unless they receive written approval from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The governor's order, in a red state that is home to thousands of H-1B visa holders, comes as the Trump administration has initiated steps to reshape the visa programme.
“In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa programme, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that programme to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions as outlined in this letter,” Abbot said.
Institutions must also report on H-1B usage, including numbers, job roles, countries of origin, and visa expiry dates, the letter said.
US President Donald Trump on September 19 last year signed a proclamation ‘Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers’ that restricted the entry into the US of those workers whose H-1B petitions are not accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 1,00,000.
The H1-B visa fee of USD 1,00,000 would be applicable only to new applicants, i.e. all new H-1B visa petitions submitted after September 21, including those for the FY2026 lottery.
Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), with China in the second spot. The major fields include technology, engineering, medicine, and research.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the second-highest beneficiary with 5,505 approved H-1B visas in 2025, after Amazon (10,044 workers on H-1B visas), according to the USCIS. Other top beneficiaries include Microsoft (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Deloitte (2,353), Infosys (2,004), Wipro (1,523) and Tech Mahindra Americas (951).
Texas public universities employ hundreds of foreign faculty and researchers, many from India, across engineering, healthcare, and technology fields.
Date from Open Doors -- a comprehensive information resource on international students and scholars studying or teaching at higher education institutions in the US -- for 2022-2023 showed 2,70,000 students from India embarked on graduate and undergraduate degrees in US universities, accounting for 25 per cent of the international student population in the US and 1.5 per cent of the total student population.
Indian students infuse roughly USD 10 billion annually into universities and related businesses across the country through tuition and other expenses – while also creating around 93,000 jobs, according to the Open Doors data.
Analysts warn the freeze could slow recruitment of highly skilled professionals, affecting academic research and innovation.
Supporters say the directive protects local jobs, while critics caution it could weaken Texas’ competitiveness in higher education and research.
The order comes amid broader debate in the US over skilled immigration and state-level interventions in federal programmes.
H-1B visas allow US companies to hire technically-skilled professionals that are not easily available in America. Initially granted for three years, these can be extended for another three years.
In September 2025, Trump had also signed an executive order ‘The Gold Card’, aimed at setting up a new visa pathway for those committed to supporting the United States; with individuals who can pay USD 1 million to the US Treasury, or USD 2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, to get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card.
