“Technology has entered society like a parasite and is a threat to humanity in several ways,” said senior BJP leader Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi at the Prabhash Prasang in Gandhi Darshan on July 15, 2018. Speaking on the 81st birth anniversary celebration of late journalist Shri Prabhash Joshi, Dr. Joshi said that with advancement in technology, humans are getting trapped in computers.
“Technology has entered our lives so much that we cannot get rid of it no matter how much we try. Technology is very magical. We are going into space, finding life on other planets, progressing in medicine, artificial intelligence etc.
"Question arises that on one hand we are going towards these things but we humans are also getting closed in a computer. Technology is like the parasite," he said.
While addressing a large gathering of over 400 people that included journalists, academicians, writers, authors, poets, scholars, people from the media fraternity, Dr. Joshi’s while speaking about “Technology and Democracy” threw light on the misuse of information and companies making money out of this data.
He also referred to Aadhaar being the newest form of data collection.
"It is a world of data. A company pays billions to get data about people. In elections earlier, people used to visit households and talk. Now everything is on mobile. Experts are consulted before speaking in a particular area as they have the data of the people there.
“Aadhaar is the new technology which takes all your information. Human identity has now become a number. Earlier it was the name and address of a person which he identified with. Now your identity is your bank account number, Aadhaar number, phone number etc.," he said.
He further said technology was being misused and dependency on it was increasing and harming society. "People rely on everything 'Google' says. Judges also give judgment using 'Google'. Teachers use it. It is an era of techno-savvy education. There is a lot of reliability and dependability," he said, adding, “This is a global crisis. You cannot evade or run away from it”.
“We need to find a new way ahead to interlink ‘technology’ and ‘democracy’ and use it with the right frame of mind. Let it not be a garage of manufacturing unit but something that is used for the benefit of humankind”, Dr. Joshi remarked with a caution that if the technology is used to spread intolerance, violent competition, then there’s a need to relook at this progressive mechanism”.
He concluded with a caution: “Should democracy be a dehumanized system or should it retain the humanity variables, needs to be looked into seriously”.
The programme organized jointly by Prabhash Prasang and Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Smriti was also attended by former Comptroller and Auditor General Shri TN Chaturvedi, who presided over the function. Others who spoke included Shri Ram Bahadur Rai, Chairperson IGNCA, historian, author Shri Pushpesh Pant and Shri Ravindra Kishore Sinha, MP, Rajya Sabha.
The programme began with a short film on his life and works elaborating on his contribution to the field of journalism as the founder editor of Jansatta.
A trust has also been established in the name of Shri Prabhash Joshi. The occasion also saw the selection of two Fellows: Shri Shashank Kumar Singh who will work on Traditional Healers of the Marm and Zarrah Traditions and Shri Devesh Tripathi, who will work on the utensil making Thathera Community of Sant Kabir Nagar, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Earlier Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi released the copy of Prabhash Joshi Memorial Lecture in 2017 delivered by Shri P Sainath.
Director GSDS, Shri Dipanker Shri Gyan presented the Angavastram, Charkha and books from the Samiti to Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi and other guests on the occasion.
Kabir bhajans by Padmashri Pandit Madhup Mudgal was another special highlight of the programme.
