Lucknow, Aug. 12 -- A workshop on Artificial Intelligence for Uttar Pradesh MLAs unleashed a volley of questions and concerns laced with laughter and wit. From data security to political utility, to concerns about factual inaccuracies, chatbots and even horoscope predictions, the issues raised spanned a wide range at the workshop held by the Uttar Pradesh assembly at the instance of speaker Satish Mahana on Sunday on the eve of the Monsoon session that began on Monday. Some of the lawmakers wanted to know how the data collected from the House to assist AI may be secured and whether technology could help them seek votes. Even as legislators expressed their views, several video clips focusing on deliberations at the workshop did the rounds of the corridors of power. Anil Singh, a lawmaker, asked: ".how can the data so collected be secured? If someone steals the data about some persons voting in favour of some other persons, this will be disturbing. My question is important. How will we ask for votes? Can we get votes using AI? What to say and what to do (to seek votes) please explain this technicality. We don't want to become NASA engineers. We have to seek votes (of the people)...," said Singh as lawmakers attending the workshop burst into laughter. Raising another concern, the same lawmaker said, "Money is being withdrawn (fraudulently) through mobiles by sending OTP. When I ask people to send their application on WhatsApp, the people tell me they have a phone costing only Rs 1500. How do we send it? This is good we are learning. What I understand is that we will get (from AI) what we give (data)." Another legislator said, "If we depend on AI, it can affect our critical thinking. If we put the burden of analysis and problem solving on AI, our cognitive muscles may go weak." At this, speaker Mahana replied in a lighter vein: "For that you should do exercise." "We are making a dashboard for every Vidhan Sabha constituency. We are only making a beginning. We will have to work simultaneously on various issues," Mahana said. A woman legislator said, "You are aware that the people want to be in direct touch with their public representatives. They (people) get upset if any assistant (aide to legislator) speaks to them on behalf of the lawmaker. The public representatives have to connect with the people directly, be it the first time MLA or a ninth-term one like minister for parliamentary affairs Suresh Khanna. Will the AI be able to cater to this sentiment? Will the AI be helpful?" Pointing out a data glitch, lawmaker Abhay Singh said leader of opposition Mata Prasad Pandey was elected legislator for the first time in 1974 (based on the information given at the workshop), but an AI platform showed 1980 as the year of his first election. "We will take your information (speaker's) to be correct and not the one given by the AI platform," he said. Referring to his chat with an AI bot, he said when he asked about the possible scenario in case of a Third World War, chatbot grouped India with America. When questioned again, the chatbot said you (India) can go with Russia. "This is what AI is," he said. Singh also said he asked the AI chatbot to read his horoscope and predict how long the legislator will have Rajyog. The AI chatbot gave him a specific time but when confronted with another observation made by a horoscope reader, AI admitted its mistake, the lawmaker said. Sachin Yadav, an engineer by qualification, said AI needed information to work and this could be gathered either in real time or from some other database or internet. AI will probably not be effective without strengthening the database, he said. Shashank Trivedi suggested that education about AI be compulsory in primary, secondary and higher education. Another legislator pointed out that the AI was giving incorrect information about his father (who was also a legislator) and whether such mistakes can be corrected. Amid such observations, Mahana said the workshop was organised to tell the lawmakers what to ask AI and what not. Minister for parliamentary affairs Suresh Khanna also said AI helps collect information. "If Google was a cycle, AI will make us ride the motorcycle," he said, adding AI is not about making predictions....