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Shri Dayanidhi Maran, Minister of Communications & Information Technology emphasised the need for greater Internet penetration in the country. He said "Internet penetration is still very low and much more needs to be done, in the area of broadband connectivity and Internet penetration needs to grow by leaps and bounds. One of the reasons attributed to the low rate of PC penetration is the high prices of computer hardware. Therefore, the Government on its part, is working closely with the industry to ensure that PC costs come down rapidly and Internet access devices come within the reach of the ordinary Indian citizen". For this, the Minister said, he had constituted a Working Group with members from industry and Government to examine various issues related to PC and Internet penetration as well as growth of domestic software market and make suitable recommendations. Shri Maran said this, here today, while speaking at a function to present the Dewang Mehta Award for Innovation in Information Technology, 2003. The Minister presented the Award to Dr. Sugata Mitra of Centre for Research in Cognitive Systems, NIIT, in recognition of his achievement, discovery of the pedagogy, science and technology of "Minimally Invasive Education". The Award carries a cash prize of Rs. 5,00,000/- with Certificate/Trophy.
Shri Maran further said that the Government has already announced a programme to establish State Wide Area Network (SWAN) up-to the block level with a minimum Bandwidth of 2 Mbps to provide reliable backbone connectivity for E-Governance. "The expeditious implementation of many e-governance plans being initiated by the Central and State Governments will come to naught if we are unable to digitally empower our citizens and make them “future-ready", he added.
About the changes required in the Indian Information Technology Act, 2000, Shri Maran said "We need to do this to keep up with the rapidly evolving ICT sector, which is in a state of constant flux, in line with global trends and developments. In order to ensure that the Government remains a facilitator and catalyst in the growth of the Indian IT – ITES industry, we have to ensure that our Policy framework mirrors the dynamism of the sector and its rapidly changing requirements. As we move ahead, it will be the attempt of this Government to revisit various provisions of the Act and remove unnecessary restraints".
Speaking further the Minister said that the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry is maturing and achieving consolidation. The Indian IT – ITES sector has to work closely with the academic community to re-define and re-orient existing curriculum and make it more industry-relevant. Regular industry – academia interactions, focused on understanding current and future ICT manpower needs are a must, if we have to build a surplus of IT – ITES human resources. This strategy will also enable India to grow into a global hub for outsourcing skilled manpower in the IT – ITES sector. The Software – ITES sector has recorded a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 32 percent over the last 5 years. The national economic output has nearly tripled—from 1.2 percent in 1997-98 to 3.5 percent in 2003-04 which speaks the success of this sector
RM/AMA- 120405 Dewang Mehta Award
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