At the heart of India encompassing five states lies the vast expanse of Gondwana, where three million people speaking Gondi live, cut off from the world of newspapers, magazines, televisions and the digital media. Activists dispute the 2011 census figure of three million, and claim at least 10 million speak Gondi. Gondi is primarily spoken…
It will be exciting to adopt the Guifi.net model for India, where many live in remote and inaccessible areas When Oracle engineer Ramon Roca returned from the US a decade back to settle down at Gurb, a village 75km away from Spain’s capital Barcelona, he found the countryside had no Internet access. Roca could work…
Connecting, informing and empowering, the Internet holds the promise to be the Great Leveller of our times. However, the way it is evolving around us, it seems poised to become a tool of digital exclusion, creating a world of great disproportion. Limiting access to non-English users, we may be unknowingly creating a virtual world mirroring…
Lumla is a small village in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering Bhutan and Tibet. It takes about an hour to reach Lumla from Tawang, the district headquarter. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is the only wireless service provider in Lumla. There’s no data connectivity unless you install a satellite (VSAT) dish. In Tawang town,…
Innovations in empowerment of minorities have both political and governance gains An inclusive democracy is one that not only claims to take minorities into political confidence and gains their trust, but is also perceived to innovate and implement plans that are realistic and sustainable. Action-oriented measures are important because when political rhetoric doesn’t lead to…
The country’s digital landscape for its billion plus population is set to build upon existing strengths and learning over the past decade and more The period 2014-19 is set to witness a transition in political governance in India’s democratic landscape. A new transformation in wider governance areas and intervention, with new ideas, vision and milestones,…
How you can contribute to the spread of digital literacy in small-town and rural IndiaChoose your dates, come along with me and meet some of the most unassuming people. These people have overcome many difficulties to adopt digital tools, and access devices and Internet connectivity. Most of them have little education, they are “backward” and…
The e-Panchayat project, implemented with a tech solution from the National Informatics Centre, is a positive developmentIndia’s right to information is perhaps a hallmark law, considering the fact that in the 21st century information is the basis of equity, empowerment, rights and access. While the law has caught the imagination of the people, it is…
Political exigencies to announce and roll out welfare schemes must match national urgency to address educational goalsI firmly believe that the digital age can change our country for the good, if digital tools are used with a citizen-centric strategy. Information poverty is the most sustained and perennial misery that a vast majority of the population…
With the emergence and rapid following of social media representing citizens voices, it is no more that alternative media is following traditional mediaIn 2011, a few days after the fall of Tunisian president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, a Jordanian newspaper published a joke doing the rounds in Egypt: “Why do the Tunisian youth demonstrate in…