Is digital inclusion dividing rather than connecting people? Are efforts such as the National Digital Literacy Mission (NDLM) and Common Services Centre (CSC) schemes making people’s lives more convenient or just miserable? With Digital India, are we trying to achieve efficiency, less bureaucracy and more transparency or are we creating another barrier to cross, …
Amid all the negativity about the roles and responsibilities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), mostly from the government and in many cases the business sector, one fact that nobody can take away from the non-profits is that theirs is perhaps the only voice shouting out loud when there are matters of concern, causes that need attention, and issues that affect civil society.
This article was first published in the Mint newspaper on August 17, 2015. How do you design a developmental solution or provide a digital tool for a poor and inaccessible area where visitors are tracked by Maoists? An area so remote that barely any telecom network works, where more than 90% of the population lives…
This article was first published in the Mint newspaper on August 9, 2015. More than four years ago, I met Rakesh Kumar from Muzaffarpur. He was at a workshop for about 50 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that we had organized in that city in Bihar. An unassuming person, he approached me with much humility and asked…
I always used to quote in my public discussions that India has more than 3.3 million non-governmental organisations (NGOs), a figure I got from somewhere and stuck with me. I also, on my own, without any substantial support, mentioned that not more than 10% of these NGOs would be working with sincerity and dedication. My…
“NGOs in crisis” “13,000 in 2 months” “Crackdown on NGOs” If you have been reading newspapers in the last few months, you would have encountered some of these headlines. There is serious worry over the fate of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and what the government intends to do with them. My view is somewhat different: The…
Dear fellow Indians, I am Ramu and my wife’s name is Sita. I have two children—Prakash and Savitri. We live in Doudi, a small village located in a corner of Kesla, in Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh. We are actually one of those 100 families who were displaced because of the Tawa dam that was…
The poorest of poor, illiterate and those living in remote areas can make use of GPS devices to prepare documentary proof of their land-use and get land titles
For many years, farmers in India have had little freedom in choosing markets and buyers for their produce. All states in the country, except three, mandate that marketing and selling of farm produce must be routed through state-owned mandis, retail markets where middlemen squeeze farmers to increase margins. In such a situation, can technology-enabled solutions…
A survey conducted among 200 women in Bhadohi and Ferozabad, two small towns in Uttar Pradesh, revealed a picture of cybercafe use in the country’s hinterland. The survey, published in Public Access ICT Across Cultures, found a strong correlation between education, income and the use of Internet and communication technologies. It also found that the…