Bridging the Digital Divide in India: Some Challenges and Opportunities
Abstract
This article discusses initiatives made in India towards digital access to information and the role of several programs in bridging the digital divide. Highlights include the far reaching policy reforms of the government in agriculture and rural development, giving impetus to reform in the telecom and IT sectors.
The author emphasizes some of the projects initiated by the government to reach remote and rural areas like “Grameen sanchar sevak,” “Gyan Doot,” the CARD and e–Seva projects, etc. It further discusses Digital Library Projects, viz. the National Science Digital Library (NSDL) and Vidya Vahini, digital mobile libraries and library networks and community information centers. The paper also mentions the role of educational institutions like the Indian Institute of Technology in reducing the information gap by launching projects like Infometa and Webel, and it discusses the role of private business houses and Indian dot–com companies in information dissemination. The article also highlights some of the challenges and barriers to digitization and the need for strong determination, good policy–making and political support in bridging the digital divide in the country.
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