# Tata Memorial director tells TISS graduates to value human judgment over AI 2026-08-23T03:26:26+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Dr C.S. Pramesh, Director of Tata Memorial Hospital, told graduating students at the 86th convocation of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) that artificial intelligence can process past data but cannot comprehend human suffering, and urged them to preserve human judgment and core values. A total of 1,376 students graduated at the ceremony in Mumbai. The event saw announcements of a new Viksit Bharat Vichar Kendra think tank and a Centre for AI under the Ratan Tata School of Analytics. TISS Chancellor D.P. Singh invoked the Samudra Manthan myth to describe AI as a churning that brings both harm and potential requiring human wisdom. The convocation was held weeks after a controversy over the chief guest invitation caused the original August 2 ceremony to be postponed. A special degree was conferred posthumously on Shrutika Baranwal, a 25-year-old victim of the June Hauz Rani fire in Delhi. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The speech comes as TISS faces a staffing crunch with only 130 of 189 UGC-sanctioned posts filled, a constraint that affects its ability to expand programmes like the new AI centre. The reference to the postponed convocation hints at the institute's recent administrative turbulence over guest selection. Graduates entering social work and healthcare will encounter a growing push from funders and policymakers to adopt AI tools, making Pramesh's caution timely. The next test for TISS will be how it balances its social science mandate with the new technology-focused centres announced at the ceremony. ## Coverage - timesofindia.indiatimes.com Straight news account of convocation speeches and announcements, no editorial slant. This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: C S Pramesh, D.P. Singh, Ratan Tata School of Analytics, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Tata Memorial Hospital, Viksit Bharat Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/tata-memorial-director-tells-tiss-graduates-to-value-human-judgment-over-ai/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/tata-memorial-director-tells-tiss-graduates-to-value-human-judgment-over-ai/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/