COVID-19: INS Airavat reaches Sudan with 100 tonnes of food aid
New Delhi: Indian Naval Ship (INS) Airavat reached Sudan on Monday with 100 tonnes of food aid as a part of Mission Sagar-II, the Indian Navy said.
Under Mission Sagar-II, INS Airavat will deliver food aid to Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mission Sagar-II follows the first Mission Sagar undertaken in May-June 2020, wherein India provided food and medicines to Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros.
"As part of 'Mission Sagar-II', INS Airavat entered Port Sudan on 02 November 2020. The government of India is providing assistance to friendly foreign countries to overcome natural calamities and COVID-19 pandemic, and towards the same INS Airavat is carrying a consignment of 100 tonnes of food aid for the people of Sudan," the Indian Navy said in a statement.
It said the mission is being done in close coordination with the Ministries of Defence and External Affairs, and other agencies of the Indian government.
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AI reshaping music, filmmaking in Kannada cinema
Bengaluru: Artificial Intelligence is slowly changing the way music and creativity are produced in the Kannada film industry, raising concerns among musicians, singers and technicians, The New Indian Express reported on Sunday.
Music composer, actor and director V Manohar reportedly said, AI is being used to write lyrics, especially in low-budget movies. Once lyrics are generated, AI can suggest thousands of tunes. It even asks whether the voice should be male or female. With one click, a complete song is ready.
“If this continues, singers and musicians will have less or no work in the coming days. But it may not succeed either. A few years ago, dubbing was allowed and people could watch movies in any language they preferred. But not many took to it as they wanted to watch a movie in the original,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
According to the report, Filmmaker Avinash U Shetty, a National Award winner, said resistance to new technology is not new. Those who resisted shifting from analogue to digital films years ago have now embraced it. The industry is now using only 10% of the AI potential. If it is scaled up, it can do unimaginable things. What we consider bad now, may not be after five years.
Highlighting the cost advantage, Sangamesh, an independent creator reportedly said, he made a three-minute video using AI for just Rs 4,500. Earlier, the same work would have cost nearly Rs 15 lakh. I finished the entire project in three days. The only expense was the AI software subscription, he said.
These days, it has become difficult to differentiate between the real and AI. AI is creating artistes. Scenes like war, big fights and dance can be shot with a lesser number of artistes. Then with the aid of visual effects and AI, you can achieve what you have in mind, he said.
Actor-director D P Raghuram felt that while AI has made an impact on music, it lacks emotional depth. Cinema earlier involved hard work and strong emotional connections. AI can help improve our work, but creativity should remain human, he reportedly said.
As per the report, earlier, Kannada cinema employed hundreds of junior artistes, who not only earned wages but also shared meals on sets and formed lasting bonds with stars like Dr Rajkumar, Vishnuvardhan and Ambareesh. Today, filmmakers fear that increasing dependence on AI could reduce such human connections, turning creativity into just another automated process.
