A growing digital divide is not found just between the developed and the developing nations; rather, it has moved a level lower. In a high-paced developing nation like India, the digital divide has started showing its obvious presence amidst the urban and the rural landscape of the country. Cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Delhi, and Mumbai have captured attention to their IT resources. Bangalore is now considered the Silicon Valley of the country. Revenue from the IT industry and IT Enabled Services Industry has skyrocketed over the years. At the same time, the rural Indian is yet to see the first-hand benefits of the Information Age.

Rural India has been the target of the “development” mantra for a long time since independence. Every five-year plan has earmarked a substantial amount to develop rural India. Yet, infrastructure, agricultural development, healthcare and readiness to face natural calamities are at strikingly low levels. How can Information Technology create a miracle of sorts in bettering the lives of the rural masses? How can computers change their world when they would rather have a basic supply of electricity? These are a few questions that scoff at the fact that technological interventions in the right direction, time and place can make the world a better place. The digital divide or bridging the divide has very little or no consequence to the rural Indian population, according to skeptics. But, with the passage of time, the skeptics are being proved wrong with success stories increasing day by day. The stories do have their shortcomings but life for the average rural Indian, whose life has been touched by technology, has surely changed for the better. Especially web-based technologies and harnessing of Internet usage for innovative interventions have been quite a boon to the people.

This book attempts to showcase specific instances of Government initiatives as well as initiatives from Non-Governmental bodies to bridge this digital divide. It also encapsulates the innovative technological landmarks that have made life easier for the rural people and enhanced their quality of living.

Divided into two sections, the book follows the template of the first section providing a background for the cases that follow in the second.

The first article, “The Philosophy of Rural Development”, by Veena Yamini B delves into the ideology and philosophy of rural development as such. Addressing the importance of development in rural India, this article profiles what constitutes rural in terms of geography and focuses on aspects of how the perspective of development has evolved since the early days of independent India with government initiatives and portrays what the present state of development is. The article provides a snapshot of the philosophy of development with its facts and fallacies. This article intends to provide the readers a comprehensive idea of what rural development means in the Indian context and how the need of the hour is to move beyond development and focus on empowerment of rural Indians.

The next article, “ICT for Rural India”, by Dr. Ajit Maru draws upon the experiences of the author in the development and use of Information and Communication Technologies, especially the radio, the television, and the Internet and Digital Technologies in agricultural extension in India.

At present, projects in agricultural extension i.e. those whose objectives are to share information using the Internet have significant difficulties in sustainability, scalability and ability to replicate. Policy makers and planners have not learned the lessons from using the radio and the television in agricultural extension. The author suggests that India would benefit from approaching the issue of using ICT in agricultural and rural development by focusing on providing broadband connectivity and a content centric development approach. Sustainable ICT enabled projects for rural development, which include not only agricultural but health, education and other information services, will piggy-back both e-governance and private sector agricultural marketing initiatives. For this, there is a significant need for restructuring agricultural and rural development institutions and organizations, so that they can generate useful and relevant content and partner with the public, private and community sectors to deliver it to rural communities.

In the article, “Problems and Possibilities of Digital Development”, the author, Aditya Dev Sood analyses the issue whether a computer can help anyone who cannot afford even basic electricity – the ongoing debate between digital enthusiasts and digital skeptics. This article critically examines the problems and possibilities of digital development in order to reveal the larger impact that ICTs could have on rural economies and societies. The feasibility of arriving at a technology-driven social change and the need to overcome the infrastructure bottlenecks rests on a practical and phased approach towards digital development. The article draws a comparison between the digital development scenario that has happened in the rest of South Asia and the one that is about to happen in India.

The above three articles attempt to create a canvass on which this book of cases can be depicted and understood. The articles are a frame of reference to appreciate and analyze the various projects discussed in the case section.

The first case in the series is the project “Akashganga”. Its success demonstrates the potential of information technology to impact the livelihood of poor, rural communities. Akashganga’s experience indicates that even illiterate or semi-literate people can adopt IT-based systems when they see tangible benefits and when the systems are deployed in a purposeful, easy-to-use way. SKEPL’s experience also indicates that providing direct benefits and expanded opportunities to poor communities in developing countries can be profitable. Akashganga, in tying to improve the productivity of its customers, will succeed to the extent that it can help transform the fortunes of rural dairy farmers, demonstrating the synergies between business and development goals.

The next case discusses “Gyandoot”, an e-government project started by the State Government of Madhya Pradesh (MP) (India), that also won the prestigious Stockholm Challenge Award in 2000. Gyandoot is an intranet network of computers connecting the rural areas and fulfilling the everyday, information-related needs of the rural people. The case highlights the problems faced by the villagers before the implementation of the project. It also provides detailed information about the implementation of the project, the services offered, and the benefits reaped after the implementation of the project. The case further briefs about the other e-government initiatives undertaken by the MP government.

“ITC’s e-Choupal” has drawn a lot of attention from corporate houses, media and governing bodies. The attempt to eliminate the malady of middlemen in the selling of agri-products and thereby providing farmers the benefits of a good return for their produce has received high praise. The understanding of the sourcing and distribution network makes ITC’s e-choupal a case of constant mention. The case examines in detail the initiatives taken by leading Indian FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) company, ITC Ltd, to utilise the potential of information technology for improving the performance of its agricultural commodities export business in the early 21st century. This exercise, carried out under the name ‘e-choupal’, was essentially an effort to build a strong supply chain network for sourcing of agricultural products. The case discusses in detail, how the company designed and executed the e-choupal project in the country’s rural areas. The measures taken to overcome the various problems faced while implementing this programme have been explored in depth. The case also describes the benefits that the company derived out of the e-choupal initiative and provides information regarding ITC’s future plans to make optimum use of the network.

The next case is “TARAhaat”, a business enterprise of Development Alternatives (DA), an NGO, focused on sustainable rural development in India, and its marketing arm, Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA). TARAhaat uses a franchise-based business model to bring computer and Internet technology to rural regions and plans to use these technologies to create revenue streams leading to financial viability for itself and its franchisees. The venture’s franchise model is likely to harness local entrepreneurial energies for the benefit of both. Its emphasis on locally-relevant content, in local languages, and strong orientation to product development based on customer feedback, together form an important characteristic, one that uses the potential of India’s large rural middle class. The company combines both commercial and NGO characteristics, potentially giving it an advantage in pioneering the relatively risky Internet market in rural India, and is unlikely to face any major competition in the near future.

“SARI” Sustainable Access in Rural India provides comprehensive information and communication services through computers and the Internet in rural areas in Tamil Nadu. It is a collaborative venture of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras; MIT Media Lab; Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Harvard University Law School; the I-Gyan Foundation; and n-Logue Communications Pvt. Ltd. Since its inception in November 2001, SARI has set up Internet kiosks in 39 villages of Madurai district and provides services like computer education, web browsing, agricultural and veterinary health and e-government services, etc.

Finally, the case on “n-Logue” is about how n-logue links village kiosks over a 20-kilometer diameter region to a central node, using a low-cost wireless infrastructure; nodes are then linked to the Internet and the phone system. Shared access at the kiosk and shared spectrum at the central node concentrate on digital traffic and ensure high levels of usage and low costs. At the same time, the n-Logue approach concentrates on the buying power of up to 50,000 customers per node, generating high cash flow. Both kiosks and nodes are operated as franchises by local entrepreneurs. The result is phone and Internet service at costs Indian villagers can afford and a business model that looks very robust. Because n-Logue’s model links the informal and formal economy, the company also hopes to sell access to its customers by providing a platform for a wide range of services.

The major perspective of this book is not just about technology turning to be a ray of hope towards empowering India’s rural poor. But, it is to highlight the efforts made in this direction that have proved worthwhile. IT initiatives in rural India have begun to take shape and their presence is going to shape the future of India.