 Microsoft's rural IT initiative
'Saksham'
Microsoft Corporation India Pvt Ltd has unveiled a scalable and self-sustaining kiosk model initiative aimed at taking the benefits of IT to rural India. It is a public-private initiative, christened 'Saksham' (Saksham in Sankrit means self-reliant). Microsoft will additionally develop a rural portal powered with content and applications aimed specifically for the rural segment by working with regional and local ISVs (independent software vendors) to accelerate the adoption of these services.
"As India marches into the knowledge economy, it is imperative that rural India, where 70 per cent of our population resides, be exposed to the benefits of IT. So far IT has been viewed as a means for social development for this segment, but we believe that it can also serve as a driver for economic growth," says Tarun Malik, lead, Rural Computing, Microsoft India.
'Saksham', through its four levers of innovative business models, public-private partnership, localised content and affordable solutions, will address the issues that have so far affected the uptake of IT in the rural segment - be it the lack of infrastructure and connectivity, or of affordable and relevant IT services and solutions. The initiative also effectively addresses concerns regarding the economic viability of existing kiosk models.
It has been developed in close consultation with industry partners and imbibes the principles of public-private partnership to create a sustainable economic model and a strong rural IT ecosystem. 'Saksham' will not only provide local entrepreneurs with the opportunity to set up and manage these kiosks for content and services, but also provide the local ISV community with the opportunity to develop rural content and applications. The rural portal which is under development currently, will bring all of these services together in a comprehensive manner at the front end, and provide a seamless experience to the end user.
Commenting on the extensive research that has gone into the initiative, Tarun Malik said, "Over the last two years, we conducted research at 350 kiosks covering 4,000 users across six states in India, and found that users are looking for a mix of online and offline services to address a range of socio-economic needs. They want access to government records, agriculture-related information, entertainment and communication services, access to commercial services such as astrology and matrimonial services, education and learning, among other things. However, there is a gap between what they want and what the existing models are able to offer. With 'Saksham' we aim to enable the rural ecosystem to deliver solutions to these needs."
In line with the needs of the rural communities, the kiosks will offer a range of relevant content and services such as:
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Government to citizen services: land records and birth & death certificates
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Health services: direct referrals to hospitals, online appointment requests, online consultation requests
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Agriculture services: vet consultancy services, agri-newspaper, online consultation
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Commercial services: insurance, digital photography, astrology, matrimonial services
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Communication services: chat, online telephony & e-mail
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Entertainment content & services: web browsing, games, music & movies
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Desktop publishing: typing, printing and designing
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Education content and services: Computer education, language literacy
Microsoft is also in talks with banking institutions including State Bank of India, which is currently running a pilot with Microsoft and IIIT Bangalore in the state of Karnataka, to provide credit options to entrepreneurs.
Lauding the initiative, M S Swaminathan, chairman, National Alliance for Mission 2007 & chairman, National Commission for Farmers, said, "The 'Saksham' initiative of Microsoft is an important landmark in India's quest for achieving a rural knowledge revolution. This initiative will help and accelerate the pace of progress in achieving the goal of the national alliance for Mission 2007 ("Every village a knowledge centre") in the area of mobilising the power of ICT for ensuring the progress and prosperity of rural India."
Microsoft also announced its partnerships with three organisations - Drishti, Jai Kisan and nLogue to roll out these kiosks across the country.
According to Ranjivjit Singh, group director, Consumer Business, Microsoft India, "We will set up 50,000 kiosks across India over the next three years. This is a great start, but is only the tip of the iceberg. Our larger aim will be to touch more than 50 per cent of the rural population - within three years. We believe that 'Saksham' serves as a great framework for a rural kiosk model, and other bodies - including government and private entities - will see merit in using it as a channel to reach rural India."
R Rangaraj
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