ict for masses by dr t.h. chowdary director: center for telecom management and studies chairman:...

ICT For Masses

By DR T.H. CHOWDARY

Director: Center for Telecom Management and StudiesChairman: Pragna Bharati (intellect India )Former: Chairman & Managing Director

Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited &Information Technology Advisor,

Government of Andhra PradeshT: +91(40) 6667-1191/ 2784-6137(O) 2784-3121®

F: +91 (40) 6667-1111, [email protected]

[email protected] @ NIRD, Hyderabad : 23 Feb 2008

THC_CTMS S378_Feb08 2

Vision to inspire & Realise the Potential of Inventions/Discoveries

• We will produce electricity so cheap that only the rich can afford to burn candles”

- Thomas Alva Edison: 1878• Ghar Ghar mein radio• Gaon Gaon mein telephone - 1978

(A radio in every home; a telephone in every villageWe will make telephoning cheaper than a post card)

- Dr T.H.CHOWDARY - 1994 Haath Haath mein telephoneGaon Gaon mein Internet (A telephone in everyone’s hand:

an Internet kiosk in every village)-Dr T.H.CHOWDARY – 1997

to bridge the digital divide.


Masses & Classes

• Masses:– Uneducated or less educated – Rural People– Urban Labouring (manual) people

• Classes– Educated, well-salaried– Businessmen– Professionals (knowledge workers)– Ruling Circles (Politicians), govt officials,

industrialists, Bankers– Security & Defence people


ICTs have Accomplished (1)

• Death of distance [Earth is Flat by Thomas Friedman]

• Postalisation of tariffs• Democratisation of knowledge [www &

Internet]• Prospect of Participatory [and not

representative] democracy (as in Athens in ancient times)


ICTs have Accomplished (2)

• Empowerment of even the small man to influence govt. [Chief Minister face to face with people]

• Getting govt to account – Transparency [govt at the door step of people]

• Masses, rural folks, artisans, women drawn into economic activity – DWACRA – global markets for folk works.


ICTs Comprise of

• (Obsolete): Telegraph, telex, Fax?• Current: Telephones (mobiles: 3.5 bln & fixed phones 1.5 bln)

– PCs; Laptops; Internet– GPS.GIS; TV [Over the air & cable]– Radio [digital, FM]– LANs, WANs, MANs,-Wifi; WiMAX– Email – Optical Fiber Cable [undersea & underground]– Microwave Radio: Satellite & Terrestrial


Development

• Economic:– Family Income– Old Age Pensions– Insurance

• Life, Health, Work

• Human:– Health– Longevity– Education– Quality of Life ( air, water, leisure, communion…)– Stable Family– Stress


Affordability of Electronic Devices:Ratio of Price of Device to Per Capita Income

1951 1974 1994 2007

Radio 2.0 0.5 0.02 0.005

TV Set NA 1.9 1.2 0.37

Year’s Telephone Service

2.5 1.0 1.0 0.12

PC NA NA 6.0 0.75


Urbanisation & Development

Rural Population Developed Developing

( 5 to 10)% (50 to 70)%

• Contribution of

Agriculture to GDP < 5% (20 to 50)%*• % Labour engaged

in Agri-related work < 5% upto 60

*15% in China and 18% in India


Urban/Rural Incomes in India

• 72% of population is Rural; 65% of workforce in Agriculture

• Contribution of Ag to GDP-18%• PCI of Rural people $ 140 (Rs. 6,800) • PCI of Urban people $ 1070 (Rs. 51,000)• What a disparity?• In China disparity is even more • Economic Development –Moral Consequences


In the Information/Knowledge-Intensive Age &Societies

• Informatics is power• Extended markets/global reach

vendors/traders/consumers• Marketisation of all activity• Less transaction costs• Work from anywhere over Telecoms• Illiterate, but industrious masses are also

voters, skilled & producers of value


Reaching the Masses

Connectivity: • Capital cost of Road: $ 300/600,000 per km.• Optical Fiber or

Photonic highways : $ 6000/ 10,000 per km.

50 times cheaper to connect photonically• 35000 towns connected by broad band OF system• 94% of 650,000 villages telephoned


Telecom Connectivity (1)

• Technology and Competition brought down costs by over 80% and prices nearly by 90%

• Rural demand for telephones exceeding urban demand • First phones people have are mobiles • Wireless deployed for last kilometer connectivity• Cable TV allowed for broad band


Telecom Connectivity (2)

• Spend on phone is less than 12% of per capita income (compared to 250% in 1951, and equal in 1994 ) it has to come down to less than 5% to be on par with developed countries

• Mobiles exceed fixed telephones; • Hardly any growth in fixed phones; • Growth in mobile phones• WiFi and WiMax being deployed


ICTs for Farmers (1) Coromandel Fertilisers – “Outreach”

• Regd. Sugarcane farmers• Centered around Sugarcane Command Area in

Nellikuppam Cuddalore Dist.• Information from Franchised kiosks (Parry’s Corners)• India Agriline Farmer’s Forum• Comprehensive Farming Services• Covers paddy also since 2002• Nagarjuna Fertilisers• EID Parry & Coromandel Fertilisers


ICTs for Farmers & Fishermen (2)

• Nellikuppam / Pondicherry -

EID Parry / Coromandel Fertilizers; and Nagarjuna Fertilizers, Services to Agriculturists

• Kerala Fishermen’s use of cell phones

• GPS & Remote Sensing guides Fishermen where to fish & unload the catch


ICTs for Farmers (3) ITC’s e-Chaupals

• Procurement of soya-beans directly from the farmer • 6,500 chaupals in 8 States, serving 40,000 villages in MP,

Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh & Utteranchal & under extension to 11 more States

• 1000 chaupals connected by V-Sats; rest wireline • ITC invested Rs.460 mil ( US $ 12 ml.) • The chaupal is operated by a trusted, selected farmer

instructed, in operation of the PC with a modem, V-Sat with a solar panel and a battery backup

• Growth & procurement of soybeans, coffee, wheat, rice, pulses, shirmp


ICTs for Farmers ITC’s e-Chaupals

• For ITC 2% saving; the Sanchalak gets 0.5% of sales

• All information in the local language in the company’s website in Bangalore ITC Infotech

• In AP of the 175 chaupals 100 relate to tobacco and 75 to acqua ( shrimp) concern

• Now collaborating with govts to deliver other services [eg.e-sevas in AP; micro credit, insurance, health & education]


ICTs for Rural Populace (1)

• Education: Computer skill integral to literacy/ education for all (AP, KN,TN…)

• Extend Internet to all villages. Upgrade public telephones into Internet Kiosks

• Educated & trained attendant

• Deliver G2C; B2C services

• Andhra Pradesh project: 5000 villages


Tele-medicine (1)

Bill Clinton and Aragonda

• School children in Aragonda screened - 34 had a hole in the heart.

• Dr. Seshagiri Rao: “ Your daughter has a hole in the heart. Send her to us during the vacation. We will fix this and when the school reopens she can join back”.



Tele-medicine (2)

• Bill Clinton ( to Dr Pratap C. Reddy): “Has tele-medicine advanced to this stage in the US?”

• Dr. Reddy: “It has not”• Bill Clinton: “It is a really wonderful thing that

Apollo is doing. The rest of the world should follow your way, so that people in remote places can get the benefit of tele-medicine”.



ICTs for Women

• DWCRA groups in Andhra Pradesh

• About 350,000 cell phones for the groups

• Product advertisement & market creation Websites (Toys, knit wear, lace curtains, ornaments, painting…)

• Tele-education.


Internet & E-Seva into Villages (AP)

• Upgrade STD/ISD VPTs into Public Internet Kiosks Rs. 50,000/- per kiosk ($120)

• Rural Service Delivery Points

• Almost e-sevas in towns available

• Land Records, Property taxes; B & D certificates


ICTs for E-Governance

• Improving efficiency,economy, effectiveness, transparency & responsiveness; simple interface with citizens• G2C government services to citizens and interactionEg: Andhra Pradesh ; E-Seva, CARD, FAST, C-COPS, SMART-Gov; E-Procurement E-Seva: > 48 services, all together from any of the centers (118 towns + 5000 villages Addl. 24,000)


Work taken to Villages: GramIT

• While US, EU, Oceania outsource to Hyderabad, Hyderabad out-sources to villages.

• Satyam Computers & Byraju Foundation• 200 Resident village graduates ( BA, B.Com,

B.Sc) trained in Ameringlish; imparted computer & Internet skills

• Satyam (Hyderabad HQ) outsourced its own internal work (pay-roll, accounting; travel; training; MIS

• Satisfied,work from abroad moved to villages


Work taken to Villages: GramIT (2)

• Broad-band telecom (optical fiber) 512 kbps extended from point of presence (POP) to work-site by PMP wireless

• Called Gram ITs, these offer transaction processing services (accounting, bulk mlng; records digitisation, reminder and follow-up and travel support).

• A whole Gram IT can be dedicated to a customer (like twinning of cities across continents; city [email protected] twinning)


Work taken to Villages: GramIT (3)

• Gram IT-team contributed part of profits for village development scheme designed by them – Independent and local initiative

• Rural Pressure group to demand and get quality infrastructure and services such as roads, retailing, education, health


Social Impact of Gram IT

• Reverse migration ( 5% within 6 months)

• Educated house-wives (lost resource) join work force (no travel)-20% now

• Un-married girls: better spouses


E M R I (1)

• 502 ambulances stationed in 50 towns, in all the State’s Districts

• 80 mln people access EMRI through 108

• 100,000 emergencies attended & 20,000 lives saved in launch five years ago

• 95% of calls answered within 2 rings

• 16 mnts to reach a victim


E M R I (2)

• A Satyam computer funded Byraju Foundation launched, operated & maintained emergency health/medical service

• Depends upon wireless, computers & networks

• Agreements with hundreds of private & government hospitals


E M R I (3)

• Police & Doctors at the Central office in Hyderabad

• Accident & Disease mapping

• Govt “owns” & other govts want

• Example of corporate service to citizens with government co-operation


The Various Divides

• Urban-Rural• The Rich-Poor• Educated-Illiterate• Landed-Landless• Protected Water; Houses; Electricity • Telephone - (the Missing Link)

• The Digital Divide


Forging the Missing Link (1)

• The Maitland Commission

(ITU/UNDP 1984)

• India’s Response

– The attended public telephone (PT)• 80% of 650,000 villages have STD/ISD PTs

• 98% of the 1000 mil. People have access to telephone


Forging the Missing Link (2)

The attended public telephone (PT)

- Illiteracy no bar, because of educated attendant; self-

employed, living by commission

- 1.2 mil PTs in India (40% in villages; 60% in towns

- 30% of telephone revenues from PTs!

- Tele-density 25% (4% fixed 21% mobile)

- Yet No disability for any


Bridging the Digital Divide (1)

• IT & Internet for Classes & Masses too

• Upgrade PTs into public Internet Kiosks

• Investment/PT - US $ 1000

• Internet connection - Access by

a) DSL wherever available

b) WLL (corDECT, CDMA)

c) Copper wireloops, WiFi, WiMax


Bridging the Digital Divide (2)

• STD/ISD Attendants become retailers of BSNL/P-Telco

• Training in Computer skills/surfing, scanning, e-mailing imparted

• Multi-service delivery

• e-mail, e-seva (32 G2C in Andhra Pradesh; 118 cities & 6000 villages (rural service delivery points); e-governance

• As kiosks are equipped with Fax & scanners language no bar – post declining

• Computer Education in 2000 schools from 2005 (age 10 to 14) in A.P (Tamilnadu, Karnataka have more)


Universal Access Fund (UAF) & Provision (1)

• 5% of sales of all Telcos• UAF Administrator• Bids for provision

– Award Criterion - Lowest Annuity Payment

• Village PTs & Public Internet Kiosks • Radio Base stations (RBSs) to cover rural areas

funded by USF & allowed to be shared• Rural mobile phone coverage subsidised from

USF


Universal Access Fund (UAF) & Provision (2)

• Telephone/Internet in schools, Public Libraries,

Primary Health Centers

• IP/VOIP Telephony, Tele-medicine

• Private Philanthropy Foundations eg. Byrraju

Foundation, Hewlett Packard - AP


ICTs Everywhere & for every Purpose (1)

• Harvesters equipped to measure grain• Fertiliser application & sprayer (insecticide)

regulated• Water distribution & irrigation regulated (Israel)• Milk procurement, sugarcane delivered,

credit/payments computerised & networked• Counselling for admission & interviews for

appointments and job search from Internet kiosks


ICTs Everywhere & for every Purpose (2)

• In the words of the Bhagavad Gita (Song Celestial)

Sarvatah pani-padam tat Sarvato'ksi-siro-mukham Sarvatah shrutimal loke Sarvam avrtya tishthati (B.G. 13.13). [IT has its hands and feet everywhere, IT has its

eyes and face everywhere, IT enhances/illumines everywhere, IT sits pervading everything


DHANYWAD:

THANK YOU

ict for masses by dr t.h. chowdary director: center for telecom management and studies chairman:...

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