NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar (right) and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Mumbai: In what is politically significant, Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar shared in Pune - the fourth in a month’s time - in what sparked off reports about the uncle-nephew coming closer after the July 2023 split in the NCP and bitter war-of-words during the 2024 Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls.
However, three meetings were official engagements while another was a family gathering, the engagement ceremony of Jay Pawar, the son of Ajit Pawar.
Ajit Pawar, who is now the NCP President and Deputy Chief Minister in the MahaYuti-NDA government, and Sharad Pawar, the NCP (SP) President, who is a former four-time Chief Minister, attended a at the Sakhar Sankul in Pune, which was also attended by officials of Vasantdada Sugar Institute.
The meeting of Monday was to discuss the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in agriculture and the sugar industry at VSI, which is a body of the sugarcane grower members of cooperative sugar factories in Maharashtra.
“Various topics such as leveraging AI to boost farm productivity, improve soil fertility, and reduce the use of chemical fertilisers were discussed at the meeting. We discussed how AI can help increase agricultural output, improve soil health, and reduce dependence on chemical fertilisers. Firms like Microsoft are supporting initiatives in this space. The agriculture department also shared some of its ongoing efforts, and best practices to improve sugar production were discussed,” said Ajit Pawar.
“Families come together on occasions like engagements, and there is no need to interpret them from any other perspective,” Ajit Pawar said.
Previously they had shared dias at Rayat Shikshan Sanstha in Satara, where Sharad Pawar is the president and Ajit Pawar is a trustee.
"When I attend Rayat Shikshan Sanstha meetings, I do so as a trustee, not as Deputy CM. That meeting focused on the use of AI in education to benefit students. Today's meeting was about AI in agriculture. When working in government, we must always focus on increasing farmers' income and reducing their input costs," he said.
Earlier, they have also shared dais at the meeting of Vasantdada Sugar Institute.