Information
Technology (IT) is changing
the life of every citizen in India. With majority of Indians
in rural areas and India being a developing country, it is vital
that Information Technology relates to the common man than to
the select few. IT will be a prime moving force for eradicating
poverty and strengthening democracy. The same technology will
be indispensable to every citizen in securing the right to information.
In November 2000, the Government
of Karnataka announced Mahithi, the Millennium IT Policy
with focus on IT for the Common Man. The conference 'IT for
the Common Man' addressed issues of concern to the common
man and highlighted successful case studies in e-governance
and tried to understand some of the applications in the international
context. The conference also provided a forum for exceptional
Indian entrepreneurs who have made it big in the IT sector.
The Inaugural session was held
at The Banquet Hall, Vidhana Soudha, Bangalore, on November
1, 2000 between 1500 - 1630 hrs. The inauguration was by Ms.
Patricia Hewitt, Minister for Small Business and e-commerce
- UK.
Session I (1645 - 1800 hrs)
An Internet plan for the common man
Alex Lightman traced the history of productivity
improvement via technology and articulated the inherent strengths
of India and how a common man could benefit from the Internet
revolution.
S M Krishna, Hon'ble Chief
Minister of Karnataka, Narayana Murthy N R, Chairman,
Infosys Technologies Ltd, and Prof. Kenneth Keniston
of MIT were the guests of honour for this session.
November 2, 2000
Session II (0930-1100hrs) Impact of IT on Development of
Social life & the Rural Poor
Michael L Best, MIT,
talked about the impact of IT on sociological development of
society. He will also highlighted the critical success factors
for a city to succeed as a hub of IT activities.
Aditya Dev Sood made a
presentation on the impact of knowledge based technology on
the life of rural poor. Sudha
Murthy, Chairman, Infosys Foundation, chaired the session
and highlighted her tremendous experience in setting up 3001
rural libraries.
Session III (1130 - 1300
hrs) E-governance Case Studies
This session highlighted certain successful e-governance case
studies like wiring the villages of Warananagar in Kolhapur
district, Maharastra; the Information Kiosks set up in all the
villages of Dhar District, Madhya Pradesh and 'Bhoomi' an e-governance
initiative of the Government of Karnataka
Sudheendra Kulkarni, Director,
Prime Minister's Office, New Delhi chaired this session.
Session IV (1400 - 1530
hrs) Individual Experience of exceptional entrepreneurs
This session highlighted
the individual experiences of exceptional entrepreneurs who
have made it big in the IT sector both nationally and globally.
The CEOs of more than 50 IT giants in the world are all Indians.
In this session, lectures by some of these exceptional entrepreneurs
were planned in order to motivate the younger generation.
B V Jagadeesh, President
and CEO of Netscaler and Co-founder Exodus Communications;
Nandan Nilekani, MD, Infosys Technologies Ltd; Pradeep
Kar, CEO, Microland, were the speakers for this session.
Session V (1600 - 1800 hrs) IT Quiz 2000 Grand Finale
As part of this conference,
BangaloreIT.Com organised a state wide IT Quiz 2000 for classes
8 to 12 and Pre-University students, in collaboration with Tata
Consultancy Services, in the rural areas of Karnataka. The IT
Quiz was held to build awareness about IT among the students
in rural areas of the state.
Attractive cash scholarships were
awarded at various levels of the quiz. The final session of
this conference was the grand finale round for the IT Quiz.
12:36:20 AM 
Information
Technology 
