Vol. II No.

2 February 2004 The first monthly magazine on ICT4D

EuroIndia2004 Co-operation Forum on

Information & Communication Technologies
New Delhi, 24th – 26th March, 2004 IT Education
EuroIndia2004, the first Euro-Indian ICT cooperation Forum organised by the
Initiatives among
Euopean Commission with the support of the Confederation of Indian Industry
(CII) and the participation of the Government of India (Ministry of Information Information for development
Mumbai Muslims
Technology & Communications and the Department of Science & Technology), www.i4donline.net
Nasscom and MAIT, this unique three-day international event will bring you
closer to the European ICT player as never before.
Integrating the
role of teachers
Indian RTD and Academia will encounter European Enterprises, Research &
Academia to discuss co-operation and develop joint RTD projects for Research
& Technology Development that are now eligible for institutional funding by the
European Union.
ICT in higher education
India is presently a key partner for Europe and this event can contribute effec-
tively to your organisation’s business strategy with a diverse programme of
numerous opportunities for participants featuring:

• Exhibition presenting Products and Technologies from Europe,

Mapping the
•
showcasing organisations, accessible to all delegates and visitors
Conference and Technical Workshops to create strategic alliances
Neighbourhood
•
•
One to one meetings with prospective partners
Presentation opportunities for individual organisations An alternate learning
experience

Participation is FREE of charge. But places are limited so register today at

www.euroindia2004.org, and explore all the benefits that this Forum brings to your
doorstep.

We look forward to seeing you in Delhi, 24th – 26th March 2004.

ISSN 0972 - 804X

www.euroindia2004.org
 V OLUME II N UMBER 2, F EBRUARY 2004

Contents

Features

IT Education
Initiatives among Mumbai Muslims ...................................... 8
Rehana Ghadially and Farida Umrani
Mapping the Neighbourhood
An alternate learning experience .......................................... 14 Rendezvous
Rumi Mallick, Anuradha Dhar and Dr.
Satyaprakash Map India 2004 ................................................................... 39
Changing Paradigms
Exam results through the Internet ....................................... 18
Neeta Verma, Sonal Kalra Columns
Insight
News ..................................................................................... 6
The hole-in-the-wall ............................................................ 22
Sugata Mitra Book Review
Transforming e-Knowledge: A revolution in the sharing of
Integrating role of teachers
knowledge ........................................................................... 37
Geo-informatics in higher education ................................... 25
Madan Mohan Rao
Seema M Parihar
What’s on ............................................................................ 41
Perspective
Information for development .............................................. 29 Et Cetera
Karl Harmsen Games people play ............................................................... 42

Published and printed by Ravi Gupta on behalf of Centre for Spatial Database Management and Solutions (CSDMS) G-4 Sector 39, NOIDA, UP, 201 301, India. © CSDMS, 2003. All rights reserved.
  Editorial

Information for development

ICT in education – a paradigm shift
www.i4donline.net
A recent advertisement of a new line of computer proc-
essors caught my attention. The bottomline of the ad-
Advisory Board
M P Narayanan, Chairman vertisement illustrated how the processor could help a
i4d
child do better at school. For a while, I wondered as to
Amitabha Pande
Department of Science and Technology, why a company, which had spent billions of dollars in
Government of India
Chin Saik Yoon
developing the processor, would find something as triv-
Southbound Publications, Malaysia ial as school homework to promote the product, when
Ichiro Tambo
OECD, France
it had corporate entities to sell it to.
Karl Harmsen And then it came in a flash. As of this day, no one would refer to
Centre for Space Science and Technology
Education in Asia and the Pacific, India literacy as the three R’s (Reading, wRiting and aRithmatic) anymore –
Kenneth Keniston there is a fourth element that is probably as trivial as the pencil and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
Mohammed Yunus eraser. It is the computeR – so very much taken for granted that it would
Grameen Bank Bangladesh
be hard to imagine a system of education without it. But then again,
Walter Fust
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, computers and the Internet do not alone comprise ICT – and the fact
Switzerland
Wijayananda Jayaweera
that the majority of students and teachers in developing nations are be-
UNESCO, France reft of these ICTs raises doubts towards as to what actually ICT does.
The media has played a significant role in imparting non-normative
Editorial Board education, right from the days of Captain Kangaroo in the West to our
Akhtar Badshah, Digital Partners
Fredrick Noronha, Bytesforall
own Gyan Darshan in India. But like most media, it follows the one-size-
Madan Mohan Rao, Consultant fits-all approach – specially packaged and customized content is difficult
Editor Ravi Gupta
and expensive to produce. This is where the Internet comes in as the big
Assistant Editor Digbijoy Bhowmik
Senior Research Associate Manish Kumar equalizer – the interchange for both content and ideas, and scalable to
Research Associate Anuradha Dhar, Gautam the level of its user. While Internet based learning has been the onus of
Navin
most emergent educational establishments, lower end educational sys-
Group Directors
tems are also using repackaged content from the Internet – a first of sorts.
Maneesh Prasad, Sanjay Kumar The proliferation of the Internet in the education system has also re-
sulted in new experiments being conducted in the art of communicating
i4d
G-4 Sector 39, NOIDA, UP, 201 301, India.
knowledge. Research on school students aged between 10 and 15, has
Phone +91 120 250 2180-87
Fax +91 120 250 0060
established that a pure verbal medium could ensure only about 40% re-
Email info@i4donline.net tention of knowledge a week after imparting the same. However, when
Web www.i4donline.net
Singapore Office
the same content was imparted using verbal and illustrative combination,
25 International Business Park, #4-103F, German and then using ICT, retention levels rose to 63% and 85% respectively!
Centre, Singapore - 609916
Phone +65-65627983 The teaching segment of society is almost unanimous that ICT will
Fax +65-656227984
never quite replace the teacher. Normative methods still rule the roost on
Printed at Yashi Media Works Pvt. Ltd. New account of social acceptability – an online degree is still not at par with
Delhi, India
one that comes from contact-based and classroom based courseware.
Designed by TSA GraphicFX www.tsafx.com
However, be it instructional methodology, educational administration or
value addition by skill impartment, ICT has made its presence felt – and
i4d does not necessarily subscribe to the views
expressed in this publication. All views expressed
it is hoped that it will soon be accepted as a tool for effective instruction.
in this magazine are those of the contributors. i4d
is not responsible or accountable for any loss
incurred directly or indirectly as a result of the
information provided.
Ravi Gupta
© Centre for Spatial Database Management and ravi.gupta@i4donline.net
Solutions, 2003

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 5


 News
Microsoft in human rights row
Technology sold by Micro-
soft to the Chinese govern-
ment has been used by
Beijing to censor the inter-
net, and resulted in the jail-
ing of its political opponents. An Amnesty
International report has cited Microsoft
among a clutch of leading computer firms
heavily criticised for helping to fuel 'a dra-
matic rise in the number of people de-
tained or sentenced for internet-related
offences'. The human rights group has slat-
ed Bill Gates's company for an 'inadequate
response' to escalating abuses in China.
'We don't believe this is appropriate or
responsible,' said Mark Allison, an Am-
nesty International researcher who wrote
the report. '[Microsoft] should be more
concerned about human rights abuses and
should be using its influence to lift restric-
tions on freedom of expression and get peo-
ple out of prison. It is worrying that they
don't seem to have raised these issues.
SchoolNet in South East Asia
The South East Asian ICT Advocacy and
Planning Workshop for Policy Makers and
National ICT Coordinators (15 Decem-
ber 2003) provided the foundation for
implementing the launching of the project.
It is through the commitment and sup-
port of officials from the Ministries of Ed-
ucation that successful achievement of the
goals and objectives set forth in the project
will be possible. Indonesia, Philippines,
Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Lao PDR
and Viet Nam committed to pilot testing
the project for three years. The project fo-
cuses on south-south cooperation, using
the full range of ICTs and partnerships to
enhance education. National SchoolNets
will also be developed to support the spe-
cific educational needs of each country.
Microsoft, UNDP join hands
Computer giant Microsoft has signed a
one billion dollar agreement with UNDP.
This five-year plan is aimed at bridging
the digital divide in developing countries,
starting with Egypt, Morocco and Mozam-
bique. While long overdue, the move is
highly welcomed. Bridging the digital di-
vide in developing countries is highly de-
sirable, but in order to be effective much
more is needed than setting up computer
centers in remote areas. For the amount
of money to be spent, simply setting up
ICT centers will require high capital costs
and would have insignificant long term ef-
fects. Costs will include real estate purchase
or rental, equipment purchase and recur-
ring administrative costs for technical and
administrative staff. There is little proof
that such centers can lead to a significant
rise in computer or internet literacy or that
they can ever become sustainable. Instead
a major annual cost will have to be born
by the host countries long after UNDP
and Mr. Gate's company leave town.
Kufuor inaugurates Burma
Camp Computer Centre
President John Agyekum Kufuor of Gha-
na called for collaboration between the
Burma Camp Computer Centre and the
Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in In-
formation and Communication Technol-
ogy to explore new ways of designing
training programmes. President Kufuor
made the call when he unveiled the plague

Thirteen languages speak to inaugurate the three point three (3.3)

billion cedis Ghana Armed Forces (GAF)

with one voice at WSF Burma Camp Computer centre at Burma

Camp in Accra. The Ministry of Defence
The Media Center at World Social Forum 2004, equipped with a com- initiated the Computer Centre in June
plete network lab of 120 computers and 40 lap-top connections was 2001 to promote computer literacy and
maintained open and functional 24 hrs for the entire forum with free education in the Ghana Armed Forces.
softweare. This is the first time in WSF history, that media members were The Centre will house 135 computers with
allowed access to the facilities at the Center 24 hrs a day. The challenges resource persons to train the soldiers. The
were present every day of this world forum, although no official com- Centre also has an Internet café and pro-
plaints: the dedicated effort of fifty Free Software Foundation (FSF) vol- vides a convenient environment for ancil-
unteers and members, with great enthusiasm and considerable knowledge lary services, such as the Burma Camp
helped in all technical aspects to make this first-time event a reality. Keep branches of the Ghana Commercial Bank
in mind this is a youth revolution, since most of the FSF volunteers are and the State Insurance Company, a phar-
younger than 21. They all showed the world that we do not need restric- macy, a bookshop and a cafeteria.
tions and privatization of systems of information, that knowledge and
human communications are truly free and democratic. Mobiles in Baghdad
Denied many modern luxuries under
Saddam Hussein, Baghdad's consumers
welcomed the arrival of cell phone service
amidst grumbles about the high fees
charged by the city's new cell phone mo-
nopoly. Iraqna began distributing cell
phones to consumers Saturday. Many had
put their names on the company's wait-
ing list two months ago after the U.S.-led
coalition gave the Egyptian-backed com-

6 i4d | February 2004

pany a two-year contract to run a cell
phone network in central Iraq. The capi-
tal has limited fixed-line phone service. But
because demand far outstripped the avail-
able lines, many residents have relied on
expensive and finicky satellite phones.
Cellphones appear ready to join once-for-
bidden satellite dishes as new symbols of
freedom and affluence in post-Saddam
Iraq. In the dictator's day, cell phones were
"only for the police," said architect Qus-
say Riyad, 43, as he picked up a phone.
India, an emerging Linux hub
At the Linux Asia 2004 conference, which
the organisers claim is the first of its kind
in Asia, the focus is on use of Linux in
enterprises, e-governance, education and
society. "Our software developers will have
a great opportunity in the area of embed-
ded software, where Linux is emerging as
the software platform of choice," said Mr
Inder Singh, CEO of LynuxWorks Inc.
Experts say that Linux would be the soft-
ware that would help bridge the digital
divide while offering a huge opportunity
for Indian software developers.
Tunisia pledges openness for
second WSIS
The government of Tunisia has assured
civil society organisations that they will be
allowed to participate in the second phase
of the World Summit on the Information
Society, to take place next year. According
to Habib Mansour, Tunisia’s representative
to the WSIS, accredited groups will be
welcome to participate, including “those
that enjoy criticising” the government of
President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. These
statements removed doubts among non-
governmental organisations and other
members of civil society about the atmos-
phere of freedom that will prevail at the
UN sponsored Summit, slated for Novem-
ber 16-18, 2005. At that second-phase
gathering, delegates are to continue delib-
erations on fair access to information and
communications technology, which had
started in December 2003 at Geneva.
China curbing freedom on
the Net?
There has been a dramatic rise in the
number of people detained or sentenced
for Internet-related offences in China, ac-
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
Open Source to aid ailing doctors
Open source software could revolution-
ize medical care in developing coun-
tries. A group of open source evangelists
are looking to share Veterans Health In-
formation Systems and Technology Ar-
chitecture (Vista), created by the US
Department of Veterans Affairs, with
developing countries. The Veterans sys-
tem is used in 170 hospitals and 600
clinics to keep track of thousands of
Vietnam vets. Open source software could help hospitals save money as well as
provide better treatment for patients. "You could have a complete hospital infor-
mation system available for free," said Joseph Dal Molin, a director of WorldVis-
ta, a non-profit corporation that aims to make affordable healthcare information
technology available worldwide. Within medical care, a unified computer sys-
tem is optimal, but for developing countries the cost of such a system can be
draining. Open source software can be tricky to implement and few in develop-
ing countries have the expertise in this area. "I admit that turning Vista into a
reliable computer system that could easily be used in different cultures and lan-
guages was a challenge," says Molin.
cording to the London based rights group throughout the state capital, Jaipur, and
Amnesty International. There are now at the surrounding countryside. The rick-
least 54 people who have been imprisoned shaw drivers, numbering around 200, are
for emailing, setting up websites or ex- largely drawn from those at the margins
changing pro-democracy messages online of society - the disabled and women.
– a 60% increase from a year ago, the group
said in its latest report on the repression Pakistan’s ICT for social
of Internet users by the Chinese authori- initiatives
ties. In addition, an unknown number of The Islamic Educational, Scientific and
people remained in detention for dissem- Cultural Organization (ISESCO)
inating information over the Internet launched an ambitious three-year program
about the spread of the SARS virus. Many to build a modern, knowledge-based soci-
of the individuals cited in the report have ety promoting cooperation in scientific
been denied due process of law and some research among Islamic member states,
have been tortured or ill treated in custo- with a special thrust on promoting toler-
dy, says Amnesty. The report detailed a ance. The ISESCO was set up by the Or-
25% expansion in Internet access in Chi- ganization of the Islamic Conference
na with the number of users rising from (OIC) in Morocco in May 1980 as an in-
59 million in December 2002, to almost ternational organization specializing in the
80 million by the end of 2003. fields of education, science and culture.
The ISESCO has 51 member states from
Rickshaws to connect India's the Islamic world. The ambitious three-
poor year action plan for 2004-2006, adopted
Shyam Telecom, by the Eighth General Conference in Iran’s
which operates in capital, Teheran last month, will focus on
the state of Rajas- the development of systems of scientific,
than, has opted to technological and vocational education
take its phones to and training.
the people rather than wait for them to
come to it. The company has equipped a
fleet of rickshaws with a mobile phone. For daily news on ICT4D log on to
Drivers pedal these mobile payphones www.i4donline.net
7
 IT E DUCATION
Initiatives among
Mumbai Muslims
The marginalization of the Muslim minority from the mainstream
development is well known. As IT and its role in growth and
globalization are established, this may not only further marginalize
Muslims from the national mainstream but also threaten their place in
world development.
The role of new technologies and their po-
tential to contribute to economic growth
and human development has been debat-
ed at various national and international fo-
rums. Speaking of equity and social
transformation, the marginalization of the
Muslim minority from the mainstream
development is well known. As IT and its
Rehana Ghadially role in growth and globalization are estab-
Professor lished, this may not only further margin-
rehana@hss.iitb.ac.in alize Muslims from the national
Farida Umrani mainstream but also threaten their place
PhD Scholar in world development.
farida@iitb.ac.in Like the ‘digital divide’, the North-
IIT, Mumbai South divide has been widely discussed in
academic circles. In recent times, the di-
vide within a society, especially across geographic location (ru-
ral/urban), class, and gender have received inordinate media and
academic attention. A society is far more heterogeneous and char-
acterized by divides besides these three. In India, other social
structural dimensions worth a mention are caste, ethnicity, reli-
gion, language and state. These digital divides deserve our atten-
tion and await documentation. Another lacuna in the IT and
development literature is the lack of focus on computer access
and learning in urban areas. It is assumed that things are well
there with the result attention directed to making IT available to
villagers. This is not to say that IT development in rural areas is
unimportant – it is to illustrate that the urban centres warrant
scrutiny as well. Studies document government initiatives – state
and centre – and NGOs thrust in IT education; what is left un-
documented are the community cum government initiatives.
Ethnic groups within the Muslim community have respond-
ed to modern technology in diverse ways. The religious
8 i4d | February 2004
leadership of the Daudi Bohra has harnessed information and
communication technologies to serve traditional purposes and
set itself as a role model for embracing ICT for its people. The
ownership of personal computers among the rich of this sect is
14.5% on par with Japan. The Memons on the other hand do
not have a single computer in their jamatkhana. Secondly, in the
bustling city of Mumbai, Muslim sects such as the Aga Khanis,
Ishana Asharis, the Bohras, Memons, Konkani, etc, populate the
area from Crawford Market to Byculla Station. This heterogene-
ity is compounded by diversity in education, class and language.
In this stretch of seven bus stops there are no world-class com-
puter training institutions such as APTECH, NIIT, or SSI.
The assumption that all is well in urban centres was chal-
lenged through a survey of women trainees enrolled for a “Wom-
en’s Special” basic course at a world class IT educational
institution. Results from Mumbai city showed that only 3% were
Muslim women. Given this state of affairs, the role of other play-
ers, in this field, if any, needs to be brought to light. The paper
highlights some community and government cum community
IT education initiatives addressed to the Muslims and describes
the nature of the beneficiaries. Besides, it critically reviews these
initiatives, share some observations and provide policy recom-
mendations. For this purpose the senior author surveyed the ge-
ographical locality mentioned above and spent approximately
twenty-two hours at various places where education was impart-
ed. She collected pamphlets, brochures and spoke to the centre
heads. In addition, information about the current batch of
the beneficiaries was gathered from the application forms to
provide a demographic profile of the beneficiaries. This entire
activity has been described in three sections – the first de-
scribes the initiatives; the second discusses the nature of the
beneficiaries and the third section offers critique and makes pol-
icy recommendations.
Nature of initiatives
A total of four initiatives were identified. These include a minor-
ity related Union Government scheme, efforts of a Muslim edu-
cational trust, a local mohalla committee and a cyber cafe.
It is assumed that things are well
Information, wherever available, on their location, academic pro-
gram, infrastructure, personnel, services offered and future plans
in the cities, with attention
is also provided. directed to making IT available to
National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language
(NCPUL)
villagers. However, urban centres
The NCPUL was constituted as an autonomous organization
on 1st April, 1996 under the Ministry of Human Resource De-
warrant scrutiny as well
velopment, Government of India. It was set up with the objec-
tive of promoting the Urdu language. Secondly, it aims to make are residing in a state capital and Rs. 250 for those in other plac-
available in the Urdu language knowledge of scientific and tech- es. Besides, an additional amount of Rs. 300 is charged for the
nological development and ideas evolved in the modern context. language diploma.
Three schemes in operation are a one-year course titled Diploma In Mumbai, there are five NCPUL centres of which four
in Computer Applications and Multilingual DTP, Arabic-Urdu are located in Muslim concentrated areas, one borders on a
Calligraphy Training and Madrasa Modernization Scheme. The Muslim mohalla and one is in a suburb densely populated by
first scheme is describe in detail. The computerized Arabic-Urdu Muslims. The Madni Computer Academy located in Byculla
Calligraphy Training Scheme is implemented at more than hun- near the mohalla and which the senior author visited is the
dred calligraphy and graphic design training centres set up in 20 first centre of its kind and has been in operation since past
states and 59 districts, with a centre each in Ranchi and Banga- five years. The centre has 15 computers out of which 12 were
lore exclusively for girls. The objective is to equip students with in operating condition. The ambience is pleasant with an air-
the latest methodologies and these centres have produced more conditioner and cushioned chairs for the students. There is
than 5000 experts to date. In Mumbai there is one calligraphy also a white board to be used for theory classes. Internet ac-
center located in the premises of the Anjuman Islam High School cess is limited to the teaching of the module. The centre has a
and two more are in the pipeline – one of which is at Ballard Pier prescribed 80 seats for the course, but has only 51 students in
and the other at Kandivali. The Madrasa Modernization Scheme the July 2003- June 2004 batch. The centre head commented
has enabled approximately 11,000 poor Muslim students from that the enrolment has gone down in recent years due to the
various parts of the country to obtain diplomas. This scheme has opening of private centres, which do not require knowledge
yet to take off in Mumbai. of Urdu language. At present, there are two male and two
The one-year course “Diploma in Computer Applications and female trainers and one male system administrator. The cen-
Multilingual DTP” is designed to promote of computer educa- tre offers a variety of services to its trainees. The toppers of
tion at the grass root level of the Urdu speaking population. At the batch are absorbed as trainers at the centre and a few oth-
par with the Department of Electronics Accredition of Compu- ers are assisted in finding placement at community-managed
ter Courses (DOEACC) ‘O’ level basic course, the content is schools/ training centres. The centre started English language
enriched with programming techniques, database applications; classes this year to increase the competitiveness of its students.
accounting packages, web designing, Urdu and Hindi desktop During and after completion of course, on a prior booking
publishing. The objective of this course is to produce medium basis students are encouraged to come to the centre for prac-
level IT employable professionals such as DTP, data entry and tice. The centre plans to introduce advanced courses like web
accounting operators and visual designers. Reference material is designing and hardware to cater to the demand of the com-
provided in English language for each of these modules. In all,
there are more than 150 computer centres across 22 states of
which 16 are accredited. Of the 9,000 students who have en-
rolled for the courses from different parts of the country, almost
50% are girls.
While this course is targetted at high school pass individuals
between 17 to 35 years preference is given to those with higher
qualifications in science subjects. They have to pass a written
test followed by an interview conducted by a selection commit-
tee. Working knowledge of Urdu language and script is neces-
sary as they have to work on Urdu software. The trainees are
expected to complete a NCPUL offered one-year diploma in
Urdu language through distance education. For the computer
course, they are required to pay a monthly fee of Rs. 500 if they

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 9

puter savvy. It has also provisioned funds to purchase addi-
tional infrastructure.
Anjuman-I-Islam Computer Training Centres (AI)
The Muslims of Mumbai established the Anjuman-I-Islam on
February 21, 1874 with the objective of equipping Muslims with
modern education while safeguarding their cultural values. It is
the largest minority educational institute in the country and has
more than seventy educational institutions under its fold. The
various institutions include engineering and medical degree col-
leges, science, commerce and liberal arts colleges, junior colleg-
es, polytechnics, vocational training centres, research institutes
and hostels. Of the 70,000 students studying under Anjuman
institutions about 20,000 are girls.
The trust runs three computer-training centres housed in the
premises of Anjuman-I-Islam managed colleges. Two are in South
Mumbai while the third is in a central suburb at Vashi. The Homai
Peerbhoy centre located in Anjuman-I-Islam campus was estab-
lished in the year 2000 under the extension and continuing ed-
ucation program scheme of M.H. Saboo Siddik Polytechnic. The
centre offers ten certificate courses of between one to three months
duration with fees ranging from Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 4,500. It also
offers six diploma courses with duration between six months and
two years and fees ranging between Rs.6, 000 to Rs.20, 000.
Reference material in English is provided for each of these courses.
The medium of instruction is English, though Urdu is used for
explanation to facilitate better understanding. The centre is air-
conditioned with a pleasant ambience and well cushioned chairs.
Besides the nine computers all in operating condition, there is a
scanner and two printers- DeskJet and laser. The ratio of two
students to one computer is the norm and for practical sessions,
the trainer gives demonstration to group of four or five students
on one personal computer. The personnel include 15 trainers, a
public relation personnel and a centre head; all of them are males.
The centre offers its students services similar to that extended by
NCPUL. The added advantage here is that the coordinator of
the scheme and the centre head maintains networking with com-
panies run by members of the community and others to facili-
tate student placement.
Mohalla Committee (MC)
After the 1992-’93 riots following demolition of Babri Masjid,
the former police commissioner of Mumbai Julio Rebeiro along
with activist Sushobha Barve started the Mohalla Ekta Commit-
tee Movement. The objective was confidence building among the
minorities and computer classes were set up to bring the people
and police together. Initially, there were two centres, one at Don-
gri, which is active and another at Nagpada, which has been
converted to a career centre. The Imamwada Mohalla
Committee Computer Centre at Dongri offers a two month long
basic computer skills course which includes MS Office 2000,
Word, Excel, Power Point, Internet and E-mail. Initially, this
education was offered free of cost, later a sum of Rs. 300/- of
which Rs. 150/- was refunded at the conclusion of the course
was introduced. At present, a non-refundable fee of Rs. 300 is
charged. The classes are held between 8.00 a.m. and 8.00 p.m.
10
with girls preferring the afternoon period. Flyers are distributed
to give popularity to the course. The personnel from the police
stations frequent the center, to learn computer skills and interact
with the trainees. Discussions on communal harmony are held
after the classes or during the felicitation of students who have
successfully completed the course.
There are 15 computers of which 11 are operational and one
deskjet printer. The centre is on the ground floor of an Urdu
medium municipal school. At present, there are two male train-
ers and there has been no demand for a female trainer from the
students or their guardians. The medium of instruction is Eng-
lish, though Urdu and Hindi are used while explaining concepts
to the students. No reference material is provided to the stu-
dents. The centre does not offer assistance in securing placements
for its trainees or any other service comparable to the NCPUL
and AI centres.
Cybercafes cum training
Cybercafes have mushroomed across India. In the Muslim mo-
hallas of Mumbai too, one sees a smattering of these cafes. There
is variation across the different ethnic enclaves, with only one
Cybercafe in the Memon mohalla, a dozen in the Bohra mohalla
and the Khoja populated Pala Gali. These centres often double
as training centres to impart basic education. The Al-Burhani
Cybercafe at Nagpada, owned and managed by an individual
from the Bohra community, offers a course, which includes Win-
dows, Excel, Power Point and Internet at a cost of Rs. 250/-.
Besides this, training in the Tally accounting package costs Rs.
750/-. The centre houses eight computers, placed in cubicles.
The café as a training centre operates like private tutorials. Usu-
ally a single student is taught, but if there are more students they
are taught together. The medium of instruction is attuned to the
demand of the student, so also are the timings. The cafe employs
a trainer to teach these computer skills. No attempt is made to
popularize training at the café, as it is not its core activity.
Profile of the beneficiaries
In the following paragraphs is described the demographic pro-
file—gender, age, educational qualification, occupational status
and proximity to the centre— of the beneficiaries at three insti-
tutions. The intake forms of the applicants enrolled in the
NCPUL run one-year diploma course (n*= 50) along with those
i4d | February 2004
enrolled in the basic skills program at An-
juman-Islam (n=61) and Mohalla Com-
mittee (n=56) were studied for the
purpose. Of a total sample of 167, 48.50%
(n= 81) were males and 51.50% (n=86)
were females. The equal representation of
Muslim girls in the sample challenges so-
ciety’s stereotype of Muslim women. This
can be explained by two reasons; one,
Muslim families prefer to send their
daughters to community managed insti-
tutions. Second, women seek certificate
courses that cover basic operating skills,
web designing and desktop publishing
whereas males prefer diplomas that equip
them with higher skills like hardware and
networking. These explanations are drawn
from comments of the centre heads. It is
interesting to note that lack of female train-
ers at two of the centers has not deterred
female enrolment. Young women are ea-
ger to familiarize themselves with the lat-
est technology and join the modern sector
of the economy. They see in it a possibili-
ty of working from home. This comes as
no surprise as a survey showed that the
top work aspiration of Muslim mothers
for their daughters was computer related.
It would be worth studying female repre-
sentation at advanced courses and how
they see themselves placed in the IT world
of work.
As far as age and occupational status
are concerned, the majority of the benefi-
ciaries were young students. Their aver-
age age was 22.64 years (range = 41; 14-55)
with 89.83% (n=150) in the age group 29
and below. A small percentage were in their
30s (2.99%, n=5), 40s (4.19%, n=7) or
50s (2.99%, n=5). The majority were stu-
dents (80.24%, n=134), followed by the
employed (16.77%, n=28) and homemak-
ers (2.99%, n=5). The overrepresentation
of students comes as no surprise as IT is
identified with the young and educated.
Secondly, it can be partly explained by
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
location of one centre in the vicinity of (a)
community-managed colleges and special
arrangements to adjust centre class tim-
ings to the college schedule. This makes it
convenient for students to pursue compu-
ter education along with their regular stud-
ies. For the employed and homemakers,
cybercafes offer more flexibility in terms (b)
of timing and course content. As one cy-
bercafe owner remarked, “Not many stu-
dents come to us for training. Instead we
have more shop-keepers and homemak-
ers.”
The educational qualification of the
trainees ranged from senior secondary
(31.14%; n= 52) and higher secondary
(41.32%, n= 69), to graduation (23.95%,
n=40) and post graduation (3.59%, n=6). (c)
Data about medium of instruction was
available for 106 beneficiaries. Of these
45.28% (n=48) are educated in English
medium and the rest are drawn from ver-
nacular medium, mainly Urdu. Despite
the additional demand on them, lack of
competency in English is not perceived as
a deterrent to acquiring computer skills.
Besides, the centres’ attempt to improve (d)
the beneficiaries command over the Eng-
lish acts as a boost to face this challenge.
As far as the socio-economic back-
ground of the beneficiaries is concerned,
data from 84 forms were available. Of
Pie charts (right)
Profile of sampled students/beneficiaries (e)
(a) Distribution by gender
(b) Distribution by age
(c) Distribution by occupation
(d) Distribution by educational qualifications
(e) Time spent per session training
11
A quick assessment of impacts
Initiatives in the sub-urban/ still-urbanising/ non-urban realms
The National Council for promotion of Urdu language (NCPUL) has 30 (28.57%) out of 105 centers
in rural and semi-urban areas example Koshambi in Varanasi, Kamptee in Maharashtra. As far as
Anjuman Islam and Mohalla Committee run computer centers are concerned, these are operative only
in Mumbai.

Social and economic multiplier(s) generated by the programs

Having a computer literate member encourages others in the family to learn computers (Umrani &
Ghadially, 2003). Similar results were echoed by our present survey of forty- three beneficiaries (
twenty-one who had completed the course and twenty-two who were enrolled in the course) where a
majority of them (91%) had encouraged their family/ friends/ neighbors to become computer literate
This facilitates penetration of computer education in the community. Three-fourths of the trainees
(70%) were keen on taking an advance level computer course.
As far as the economic multipliers are concerned, assistance is offered in job placement by the
centers. For example, the center head at the Anjuman Islam center coordinates with the Muslim busi-
ness houses for this purpose. He remarked, “Our students have found jobs at Allana House in India and
some found work in Dubai. Aamir was working as a peon in Anjuman Islam school, the head of the
Anjuman-I-Islam Trust extended him financial assistance to complete our course in Networking. Today he
is working in a multi national firm.” Our survey reveals that, from amongst the beneficiaries who
completed the computer course, the males were involved in jobs like computer operator (18%) or have
joined family business (27%). For the female beneficiaries, the major economic empowerment comes
mainly from employment in education related fields. Few (18%) are absorbed as trainers with salaries
ranging from 2,500 to 6,000. 36% give computer tuitions to schools students. For both male and
female students, simultaneous pursuit of two kinds of education, college and IT, assists them in job
search and boosts their confidence when approaching the job market.
Center heads are aware of the job market related to BPOs/ITES. But no systematic effort is made to
tap or prepare students to enter this sector. However, they are making a beginning in this area. For
example, the Anjuman Islam Center had organized a seminar on Jobs in Medical Transcription and
plan to conduct similar seminar on jobs at call centers. This center is also running English language
and personality development classes- one session each week. No such effort has been made by other
institutes/ centers. As far as students’ views on these are concerned, half of them (21/ 43; 49%) were
aware of jobs in BPO/ ITES but a very small percentage (12%) had applied in this sector. It may be
noted that most of the beneficiaries were still pursuing their college studies; hence a clear picture will
emerge later.

Development of sustainable translingual software/ICT practices

NCPUL offers Urdu DTP as a part of the one-year diploma course. At present, they are using the
Urdu language software developed by a private firm – Concept software based in Delhi. However,
NCPUL has given a project to Center for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), Pune to
develop this software which is more advanced, customized to the needs of the council and economical
in the long run. At other institutes, the usual English software is used.

Increase in PC ownership/ SME development

The survey revealed that one-fourth (10/43; 23%) owned a computer at home while another half ( 25/
43; 58%) plan to purchase one.There were a few instances where individuals applied their computer
knowledge to improve their business. For example, Shazia Khan, a LIC agent said “Now I maintain all
the policy record of my clients on computer”. Another beneficiary, Sameer Malwakar said “I have joined
my uncle’s office and help him maintain accounts on the computer”.

12 i4d | February 2004

these 72.62% (n=61) belonged to lower income group, 23.81%
(n=20) to the middle-income group and 3.57% (n=3) to the
upper income group. The sample is drawn predominantly from
the weaker sections of the community because of subsidized rates.
For example, a subsidized basic computer skills course at leading
IT education institution costs anywhere from Rs. 500 to 800
whereas a similar course at the Mohalla Committee centre costs
Rs. 300. Similarly, a one-year diploma course costs Rs.30, 000/-
at NIIT while a comparable course at the Anjuman Islam centre
costs Rs. 12,000 though the former assures job placement. Even
world-class institutions run subsidized courses and offer schol-
arships. Their location in the geographical area mentioned above
could attract and benefit the economically weak to get a brand-
ed education. Besides the middle and upper class youth would
benefit if these institutes were more conveniently located. Re-
garding proximity of the centre, 39.52% (n=66) of the trainees
were located within a 30 minute walk from the centre. For the
economically disadvantaged, cost and convenient location are
two major attractions to these community-based institutes. It is
the established reputation of Anjuman Islam as an educational
trust that attracts trainees from relatively distant places.
Critique and observations
Looking at the initiatives and profile of the beneficiaries the fol-
lowing observations and critique are offered:
• The initiatives do not promote IT for IT sake, but link it with
other considerations like promotion of Urdu, communal har-
mony or part of a wider educational initiative. This may un-
dermine the importance of computer education in its own
right.
• These courses are not sufficiently publicized. In cases where
newspaper advertisements are inserted, they are in Urdu pa-
pers, thus limiting awareness to the Urdu speaking popula-
tion. This overlooks Muslims with no Urdu language skills.
• The centres equate basic computer education with skills in
Microsoft-Windows. Open software like Linux that are likely
to be more beneficial in the long run due to low cost and
higher security is not considered.
• The initiatives cater to the young students. The divide across
age/education/occupation is bound to get worse and needs to
be addressed. For instance, the various sects of Mumbai Mus-
lims are petty traders and shop-keepers and by one count 53.4
% of urban Muslims are self-employed. Training them be-
comes relevant as Patrick Dixon, Chairman of Global Change
Ltd. speaking of the future scenario at the ‘The Spirit of Suc-
cess’ a seminar organized by the Economic Times’ Corporate
Dossier and Federal Express, said that small businesses and
multinationals will be driving the economy of the future. If
small businessmen in India harness the Internet’s potential, in
five years the country would see the birth of a million entre-
preneurs selling their wares to the global market through the
Internet.
• The three initiatives enjoy national or local recognition but lack
the prestige of world-class institutions. One center head said “these
are charitable endeavours and not managed professionally. This
has implications for the beneficiaries’ employment”.
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
• To increase their competitiveness in the IT job market the
beneficiaries have requested comprehensive package that in-
cludes English proficiency and personality development.
Recommendations
We make the following recommendations to facilitate penetra-
tion of computer education among urban Muslims of India:
• Government, NGOs, community and private initiatives are
needed to promote computer education among the poor and
the marginalized in the urban centres. One fifth of Indians
are extremely poor, and about half of them are Muslims.
• Systematic surveys are needed on the state of IT education
among minority groups to get insight into the nature of the
digital divide in all its complexity.
• The urban scenario favours students bypassing other sections
of the community. Young adults, the middle aged, the illiter-
ate and less educated, homemakers, petty shopkeepers and
the employed need to be integrated in the information age.
What barriers operate on this section of the urban popula-
tion and what factors facilitate adoption is worthy of scholarly
attention. Increased access and hands on exposure would en-
courage them to become computer literate. One way of achiev-
ing this is to set up computers in places frequented by them such
as mosques, madrasas, jamatkhanas, shrines, etc. This is drawn
from the unsupervised approach to promote mass computer lit-
eracy, which emphasizes access through open, public internet
kiosks to target disadvantaged learners. 
n = sample size
References
• Blank, J. (2001) “Mullahs on the Mainframe”, The University of
Chicago Press, Chicago
• Ghadially, R. (1996) “On their Own Initiative: Changing Lives of
Bohra Muslim Women”, Manushi, No.96.
• Jaju, S. (2003) “Administration in the Digital Age”, i4d, 1 (2),
27-30.
• Mitra, S. (2000) “Minimally Invasive Education for Mass
Computer Literacy” at http://www.niitholeinthewall.com/
status.htm
• Noronha, F. (2003) “Computers to Schools”, I4d, 1 (2), 31-32.
• Razaack, A. and Gomber (2003) “No White Collar Jobs For Me”
from A Case Study of Empowerment of Muslims (Report). National
Council of Applied Economic Research. (cited in The Indian Express,
September, 14 )
• Siddiqi, M. N. (1997) “Muslim Minorities in the Twenty First
Century: A Case Study of the Indian Muslims”, 3 (2), Encounter’s
Magazine, Leicester, UK at http://islamic-finance.net/islamic-
economics/eco4/eco4-5.html
8. Times News Network (2003) “Futurist Uncorks Spirit of Success”,
The Times of India, December, 15.
• Umrani, F. and Ghadially, R. (2003) “Empowering Women
through ICT Education: Facilitating Computer Education”,
Gender, Technology and Development, 7(3), 359-377.
13
 M APPING THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

An alternate learning
experience
Except the lone community kiosk in rural India there are very few
instances of knowledge dissemination through IT. Knowledge creation
by the community through IT is still a dream.
The major goal of education is the acqui- connected to their community, particularly to their school.
sition of basic academic and social skills, Knowledge gained through education should foster in each in-
which would permit progression to further dividual a stronger sense of responsibility and increase awareness
education, training or employment. Today in each individual of the world around her/him. Education should
education is limited to fixed syllabus, rigid not only improve attitudes toward learning and improve basic
timetables and permanent classroom exer- academic skills but also encourage the development of better,
cises. The instructor instructs and the stu- more productive social skills; so as to improve communication
dent passively listens. Where as most with peers and adults.
Rumi Mallick children have a fresh and magic ways of Hence, a productive ongoing relationship is required between
Sr Research Associate seeing the world, the present formal edu- the community and the schools, which will not only strengthen
rumi@csdms.org cation system provides no scope for the stu- the communities but also benefit policymakers, educators, and
Anuradha Dhar dents to express their creative self or vent the general public who seek to improve the education system.
Research Associate their imaginative spirit. Students are sim-
anuradha@csdms.org ply passive recipients of handed down Educational technology
Satyaprakash, PhD knowledge with absolutely no participation Educational technology is widely recognized as an essential part
Project Manager in knowledge creation. Again educational of education in the 21st century. Technology plays a key role in
satya@csdms.org outcomes, measured
CSDMS solely by the perform-
ance of students in
tests, have quite often remained the same.
While many schools specify high perform-
ance goals for all students, unfortunately,
measured performance often falls short of
expectations.
A characteristic of the present education
system is that it has very little public involve-
ment or support. The present system pro-
vides no scope for the community to support
and be involved in the education process or
address issues of common interest. There is
very little interaction or dialogue between
the schools and the community at large. As
a result, school goals rarely interpret into the
educational goals of the community. Aca-
demic skills learned in schools are not able
to meet the community needs.
Education should help citizens feel more Students mapping with PDA and GPS

14 i4d | February 2004

Students learning to use PDA and GPS
helping student achieve higher quality education in order to meet
the challenges of a rapidly changing world. Today technology is
being used as a tool to level the educational playing field.
Blaise Pascal, philosopher and mathematician said, “Words
differently arranged have different meanings, and meanings dif-
ferently arranged have a different effect.” This expression today
stands true for technology. Technologies differently used have
diverse effects. With so many technologies to choose from, it is
the usage, which makes a difference. The way a technology is
put to use gives it a new dimension, and unique perspective.
And therefore, technology is not only technology but has more
importantly become a ‘tool’-specifically those concerning with
information and communication i.e. ‘ICT’.
In India, computers have entered the classrooms. The impact
of computers is getting more and more noticed especially in
smaller and remote parts of India. However the use of computer
in most of the schools is still limited to the fixed syllabus and
rigid timelines. Again, there is an overwhelming digital gap in
the education segment. The urban schools have adopted newer
paraphernalia like the Internet but, the rural schools have just
been introduced to computers.
Except the lone community kiosk in rural India, there are
very few instances of knowledge dissemination through IT.
Knowledge creation by the community through IT is still a dream.
However all is not lost. There is a great potential and the
‘ICT have-nots’ can transform into ‘ICT-haves’, where the com-
munity with school children as the torchbearers can change from
passive helpless recipients to active information and knowledge
creators. Use of ICT for education can not only increase the
students fluency with technology but also give them new roles to
in information process, hence providing leadership for the com-
munity.
Community mapping
Mapping helps in relating to the territories and terrain, the spac-
es and places of our lives. Maps have immense spatial power as
they reflect the culture and links personal knowledge to commu-
nity learning and planning. Community mapping has been used
as a tool for community learning and planning for sustainability.
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
Villagers participating in mapping
The approach is community centric and the emphasis is on com-
munity driven knowledge production as the essence of sustaina-
ble development. In fact, community mapping has today become
a central part of the emerging paradigm of participatory learn-
ing, community empowerment and sustainable planning.
Community mapping initially helps to identify the different
spaces used and occupied by the community, and then provides
a visual representation of those spaces (a most effective way of
communicating/interpreting those spaces to/for the others) and
in the process links information to place. Thus, understanding
what is happening in the communities (through the community
maps) can help in decision making and consensus building which
can translate into policy design for community development.
Mapping the Neighbourhood: A case study
in Almora
One such community mapping initiative involving school chil-
dren is a project called ‘Mapping the Neighbourhood’, spon-
sored by the Department of Science and Technology, Government
of India. The Hawalbag development block has been selected
within the Almora district of Uttaranchal state for the imple-
mentation of the project. The project has attempted to facilitate
community learning through neighbourhood maps that are
grounded in ecological and social narrative with school children
as the spearhead of knowledge creation.
The project has aimed at bringing high-end technology to
the rudimentary level of the village community. School children
from rural and urban areas have been initiated to use indige-
nously developed geographic information systems (GIS) soft-
ware running on a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) coupled with
Global Positioning System (GPS).
The project has excited the students in scientific and techno-
logical innovations. They have become channels for the dissem-
ination of scientific and technological knowledge. The focus is
not just technology but also its innovative use for mapping the
neighbourhood and its resources. This would build their profes-
sional capacity. The maps prepared through community-friend-
ly-technology by the school children can then be fed into the
ongoing planning and development process.
15
 The students learn by doing and since the process is a not a by experts and advocates, the students exchange ideas on issues
part of the general classroom exercise, they learn to contribute in of common concern.
an innovative manner. Thus knowledge gained through ‘doing’ In the same way, ordinary citizen from all sections of the com-
and practical experience is not only more exciting and memora- munity has been involved in open discussions about an issue of
ble but also more valuable with long-term impact. Through this importance to them. After the conclusion of the discussion or
practical experience of creating maps of their neighbourhood, study, results can be shared with the community, and action ide-
students would not only experience learning in a different envi- as may be considered and developed in an “action forum.” The
ronment but would also contribute positively to the community results of the forums can then be shared with local leaders. In
by generating database for the community which can be used for addition, community members who have attended a forum may
developmental purposes. They learn about the relationship be- often decide to continue to work together to try to solve prob-
tween the community and the environment and also learn to lems in their community. Thus neighbourhood maps created by
conserve resources and improve the quality of life. the students with community assistance can help the communi-
ty to make informed decisions about
the best policies and most appropriate
programs for the areas.
Students and teachers
Experiences
The students of most of the govern-
Problem ment schools in rural areas were found
Interaction Discussions non-responsive and hesitant in the
identification
with all beginning of the project. However as
with
local bodies Technology demonstration the project proceeded and technology
community
was introduced, the students became
Data collection and mapping very inquisitive and excited. Most of
the rural students involved in our
project knew very little about the com-
puters. Urban school students were
Neighbourhood Information System more open and had in fact far more
knowledge about the computers than
their rural counterparts. The best part
Invaluable local information repository of it all was that they were all ready to
learn. This was enough for us to start
and introduce the new technology.
The process of Neighbourhood Mapping being followed in Almora The students, who were exposed to
new technologies, which they had nei-
This neighbourhood mapping process not only involves gen- ther heard nor used before, received the exercise enthusiastically.
erating community maps but also involves deliberative discus- They were thrilled to see their own school and its surroundings
sions as a framework for solving problems. With enhanced on maps in a computer. The use of ICT brought a new facet in
awareness about the community, the students are provided a the learning process.
ground where they can
• understand the complexities of issues their community faces; Conclusion
• openly share their diverse perspectives and concerns; and The use of ICT as an alternate form of education in rural and
• identify solutions to problems urban areas has demonstrated that this form of education can
have a positive affect on the community at large, leading to-
Discussion forums are an integral part of neighbourhood map- wards community development. Innovative use of technolo-
ping. The students discuss, from their personal experiences, is- gy can change the way development takes place and ensures
sues that concern their locality and community. They proceed that the issues of the general public are addressed. Taking the
to examine multiple views and perspectives. In the end they un- children as the ‘agents of change’, this project has tried to
derstand the complexities of the issue and come to an informed evolve an alternate form of education as well as developmen-
opinion. Rather than responding to presentations or proposals tal process. 

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16 i4d | February 2004

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 C HANGING P ARADIGMS
Exam results through
the Internet
In the decades spanning 60’s and 70’s in
the 20th century, exam results, especially
those of the State School Boards meant,
students and parents spending sleepless
nights waiting for the early morning arriv-
al of the ‘Gazette’ carrying the result. With
the change in the pattern of Education
Boards all over the country, the concepts
Neeta Verma of +2 results and significant increase in the
Senior Technical entrance exams for various professional
Director courses came into fore, not only enhanc-
neeta@hub.nic.in ing the number and magnitude of exami-
Sonal Kalra nations but also bringing tough
Editor, Informatics competition in the academic scenario. Till
sonal@hub.nic.in a few years back, it was a common sight to
National Informatics see the students thronging notice boards
Centre trying to find their roll number in the list
of successful candidates. The emergence of
Internet has seemed to transform the above scenario as it has
made it possible for students to check their Exam Result in the
comfort and safety of their own homes with the ‘moment’, just a
mouse click away…
The practice of using the World Wide Web as a medium to
publish examination results is not new, especially in countries
with a high rate of Internet usage. The concept picked up in
India during the past 4-5 years with the increased proliferation
of Web and its reach into the Indian homes and Cyber cafes.
The organization behind the vast exercise of publishing the var-
ious exam results on the Internet in India is National Informat-
ics Centre (NIC), a part of the Ministry of Communications &
Information Technology. Through its nationwide infrastructure
present in all States, Union Territories (UTs) and Districts of
India, NIC has been publishing and disseminating the results of
several academic and recruitment examinations through the
Internet every year.
Current scenario
In the education system currently prevailing in India, there are
State Education Boards in various States /UTs apart from the
Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Indian
Council of School Education (ICSE) at the All India Level. These
Education Boards conduct examinations at the level of matricu-
lation (class 10th) and + 2 (class 12th). Some state boards also
conduct exams at the level of class 8th. Millions of students ap-
18
pear for these examinations every year and wait for the results
with baited breath. The results of the examinations are prepared,
compiled and declared by the respective boards by sending the
detailed mark lists of the students to the respective schools. For
the past four to five years, these school results and many others
including entrance examinations for professional courses are be-
ing simultaneously released on the Internet as soon as it is ready
on the exam results web portal (http://results.nic.in) developed
for this purpose by NIC.
The process
The entire process of publishing results on the World Wide
Web comprises a number of steps and stages. Based on a thor-
ough research and its IT expertise, NIC has acquired the req-
uisite know-how and prepared a generic software for
publishing results which has been made available to all the
NIC centres across India with appropriate guidelines to use/
customise the software as per varying requirements of differ-
ent examination agencies.
Exam Results being a sensitive issue on which the future and
career of millions hinges, it is imperative to ensure that the in-
formation is absolutely accurate and reaches the intended target
audience with minimum effort and delay. As a first step, the
NIC centres in various states and UTs, in consultation with the
concerned State Education Board, customise the software in terms
of information requirement, lay-out, number/type of reports to
be generated, etc. The result data, once prepared in the digital
form by the respective Board is then transported in the appro-
priate format on to the results servers being maintained by NIC.
All this invariably involves a sound infrastructure set-up geared
to meet the huge anticipated traffic, especially during peak hours
and also having appropriate back-up and contingency measures.
NIC has established ICT infrastructure comprising a series of
state-of-the-art dedicated web and database servers along with
latest applications and performance tuned network devices for
this purpose.
Important announcements, both prior to the declaration of
the result and upon its launch on the Internet, are posted on the
web portal informing students, who can then access their results
using a simple browser based interface by entering their roll
number at the requisite place. The seemingly simple exercise takes
a lot of hard work, technical co-ordination and seamless plan-
ning in the background to meet the ever increasing expectations
of the examination boards as well as aspiring candidates.
i4d | February 2004
Additional delivery channels
Realising the present status of Internet access in India and the
need to make this information reach even the remotest corners
of the Country, the exam results are being disseminated using
multiple channels so that more and more students can access
them with minimal time and effort. Therefore, besides the World
Wide Web, the results are also being made available through
IVRS, SMS and Email.
• IVRS (Interactive Voice Response System) In IVRS, the call-
er dials a given telephone number and the computer plays the
part of an operator giving out the information requested, in
recorded or synthesized voice. The server is configured to ac-
cept calls with the help of dedicated CTI (computer telepho-
ny interface) software and hardware. The calls can be placed
from any standard telephone instrument. A large number of
students access their results using this channel.
• Short Message Service The Short Message Service (SMS) is
the technology to send and receive short text messages from
one mobile phone to another mobile phone. SMS based tech-
nology is not only cost effective but extremely efficient too.
Considering the high density of cell phone users in India,
various results are now being provided to the students through
the SMS on the mobile phones. The users have to type a speci-
fied message code followed by the Roll Number and send the
message to a designated number to obtain the results.
• E-mail The anxious students are also able to receive their re-
sults in their individual mailboxes, for which they had to pre-
register with the Results web portal. Apart from this, complete
school wise results are also being sent to the various schools
through email on pre registration.
Success Indicators
The examination results declared by NIC on its various servers
over the past few years have received a large number of hits from
anxious students, teachers, parents, school authorities and other
interested stakeholders. In 2003 itself, a whooping 26.7 million
hits were received on the website hosting the Central Board of
Secondary Education Results. While 3,30,000 marksheets were
emailed into the individual students’ mailboxes, 3,80,000 and
2,10,000 results were disseminated through IVRS and SMS re-
spectively.
Within a few moments of the declarations of Results, hits
were seen flowing in from all over the country (including the
remotest corners through the cyber cafes/ community centres)
as well as from other parts of the world.
Impact
The Technological advancements and progress in the field of
Information and Communication Technologies has come to
change the very way we lead our lives. The whole concept of
Exam results web portal: www.results.nic.in
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
declaring Exam Results over the Net has done more to promote
the Internet awareness and usage than most other conventional
promotion strategies. The sensitivity of the issue and the anxie-
ty factor associated with the very concept of Exam Results made
the exercise popular even in areas known to be having very low
Internet penetration. Even in the case of North Eastern States
marred by adverse terrain and climatic conditions, students were
seen thronging the CIC Centres set-up by the Department of
Information Technology (http://www.cic.nic.in) anxiously await-
ing their marksheet to appear on the computer screen.
Reports from States like Uttar Pradesh indicated that students
were ecstatic on receiving the marksheets at the same time as
declaration of the Results, something which took many days ear-
lier since the marksheets used to arrive by Post. This also meant
that the students did not have to wait any longer to apply for
admissions into Colleges for further studies.
Indirect beneficiaries of the whole exercise turned out to be
the Cyber Café owners as their business got a tremendous boost
whenever the Results were declared on the Net. Considering the
fact that average ownership of Home PCs in India is still quite
low, students were seen waiting at the cyber cafes for their turn
to check their results. This has again resulted in a sharp increase
in Internet usage as Cyber Café Managers report that many stu-
dents who had visited a cyber café for the first time to check
their exam results eventually ended up becoming regular net surf-
ers.
Encouraged by the success of this initiative, many Institu-
tions/Universities/Boards have enhanced the level and type of
usage of ICT in the ambit of their total operations and at the
same time, the familiarity and trust level of various stakeholders
(officials, students, teachers, parents etc) in technology has sig-
nificantly gone up. Some of the Boards are now delivering the
Admit Cards to the students through the Net. The Counselling
for admissions after the AIEEE-2003 (All India Engineering/
Pharmacy/Architecture Entrance Exam) was carried out online
and students can also submit the application forms for the next
year through the website. With a large number of exam related
activities coming into the online arena, we are witnessing a par-
adigm shift and the future is likely to herald a wider utilization
of ICT applications in the education sector. 
19
 I NSIGHT
The hole-in-the-wall
Access to state-of-the-art PCs to
several thousand children in urban
and rural India was provided. The
computers were placed outdoors,
usually mounted on walls and,
hence, often referred to as
“hole-in-the-wall”.
The experiments were initiated at Kalka-
ji, New Delhi, by NIIT Limited, Indian
software and training multinational,
through its Center for Research in Cog-
nitive Systems (CRCS). They were later
continued by CRCS and through a com-
pany, Hole-in-the-Wall Education Lim-
ited (HIWEL), set up in 2001 for this
Sugata Mitra purpose. HIWEL is a joint venture com-
R&D Head pany between NIIT Limited and the In-
NIIT ternational Finance Corporation, the
sugatam@niit.com industrial financing arm of the World
Bank.
Several projects have been initiated since then and include
the following:
• The Shivpuri (1999) experiment- one computer in the state
of Madhya Pradesh, funded by NIIT Limited
• The Madantusi experiment (2000)- one computer in the state
of Uttar Pradesh, funded by Dr. Urvashi Sahni and NIIT Lim-
ited.
• The Madangir project (2000)- 30 computers in six locations
in Delhi funded by the Government of Delhi and NIIT Lim-
ited.
• The Sindhudurg project (2001- 10 computers in five loca-
tions in the state of Maharashtra, funded by the ICICI bank
and NIIT Limited.
• The IFC project (2002)- a plan for 66 computers in 22 loca-
tions spread throughout India, of which 33 computers in 11
locations are currently functional, funded by the IFC and NIIT
Limited.
• The Alexandria project (2003)- a plan for 90 computers in 30
locations spread throughout Alexandria, Egypt. The first ki-
osk is scheduled to be opened on October 12, 2003. The
22
project is funded by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
• The Cambodia project (2003)- a plan for 10 computers in 5
locations in Cambodia. A gift from the Prime Minister of
India to the Cambodian government. The project is funded
by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Gov-
ernment of India.
All projects, except in Shivpuri, are continuing (September, 2003).
The 75 computers installed in India so far are used by an esti-
mated 7,500 children.
Groups of 6 to 13 year old children do not need to be “taught”
how to use computers. In experiments conducted in India since
1999, as listed above, it has been shown that children can self-
instruct themselves to operate computers. Their ability to do so
seems to be independent of their:
• Educational background
• Literacy levels in the English language or any other language
• Social or economic level
• Ethnicity and place of origin, i.e., city, town or village
• Gender
• Genetic background
• Geographic location
• Intelligence
What do they learn?
An estimated 100 children can learn to do most or all of the
following tasks in approximately three months, using the “hole-
in-wall” arrangement with a single PC:
• All windows operational functions, such as click, drag, open,
close, resize, minimize, menus, navigation etc.
• Draw and paint pictures on the computer
• Load and save files
• Play games
i4d | February 2004
• Run educational and other programs
• Play music and video, view photos and pictures
• Browse and surf the Internet, if a connection is available
• Set up e-mail accounts
• Send and receive e-mail
• Chat on the Internet
• Do simple troubleshooting, for example, if the speakers are
not working
•· Download and play streaming media
• Download games
In addition to the above task achievement, local teachers and
field observers often note that the children demonstrate improve-
ments in:
• School examinations, particularly in subjects that deal with
computing skills
• English vocabulary and usage
• Concentration, attention span and problem solving
• Working together and self-regulation
However, it is not known yet, if these latter effects are universal
and evident in all children.
A frequently voiced concern
It is important to mention here that no instances of pornograph-
ic material access among these target groups, ie, children aged
13 and below was observed. However, adults, if allowed to use
the facility are likely to access such material.
(“when you right click on a hand shaped cursor, it changes to
the hourglass shape for a while and a new page comes up”).
• They memorise entire procedures for doing something, for
example, how to open a painting program and retrieve a saved
picture. They teach each other shorter procedures for doing
the same thing, whenever one of them finds a new, shorter,
procedure.
• The group divides itself into the “knows” and the “know nots”,
much as they did into “haves” and “have nots” in the past.
However, they realise that a child that knows will part with
that knowledge in return for friendship and exchange as op-
posed to ownership of physical things where they could use
force to get what they did not have.
• A stage is reached when no further discoveries are made and
Facing page
Kalkaji, New Delhi. The hole-in-the-wall, 1999.
Below
• Madangir, New Delhi, 2000
• Village Kalse, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra 2001
• Village Kalludevanahalli, Karnataka, 2002

How does it work?

Learning process in a Minimally Invasive Environment
(MIE)
Certain common observa-
tions from the experiments
reported above, suggest the
following learning process
when children self-instruct
each other in computer
usage:

• One child explores ran-

domly in the user inter-
face, others watch until
an accidental discovery
is made. For example,
when they find that the
cursor changes to a
hand shape at certain places on the screen.
• Several children repeat the discovery for themselves by request-
ing the first child to let them do so.
• While in step 2, one or more children make more accidental
or incidental discoveries.
• All the children repeat all the discoveries made and, in the
process, make more discoveries and start to create a vocabu-
lary to describe their experience.
• The vocabulary encourages them to perceive generalisations

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 23

 the children occupy themselves with practising what they have
already learned. At this point intervention is required to in-
troduce a new “seed” discovery (“did you know that comput-
ers can play music? Here let me play a song for you”). Usually,
a spiral of discoveries follow and another self-instructional cycle
begins.
lic Internet kiosks should form an integral part of primary edu-
cation in the 21st century. It has the potential to not only close
the “digital divide” rapidly, but also to unlock the creative
potential for self-development of children that eminent educa-
tionists have sought to do for over a century.

In order for the above instructional objectives to be met, it is

important that:
• The computer should be in an outdoor, public, and safe loca-
tion. Children, and often their parents, are apprehensive of
enclosed spaces such as closed rooms or “clubs”. Locating com-
puters indoors, even inside a school, is associated with regi-
mentation, control, “studying” and other negatives associated
with formal schooling. Locating a computer in a school play-
ground, on the other hand, is ideal.
• Children should use the computer in heterogeneous groups.
Since the MIE process depends on exploration and discovery,
working in groups is essential. Collaborative constructivism
is the main paradigm of MIE. Children teach each other very
effectively and are also effective at self-regulating the process.
That is how over 100 children are able to use one computer.
• There should be no adult intervention or supervision. Adults
should not use the kiosk. All activity should be monitored
remotely to ensure that the kiosk is being used for the right
purpose.
• PC functioning and Internet connectivity should be reliable.
Based on the above observations, a set of guidelines have been
developed that enables educators to set up their own MIE kiosk
facilities. These include:
• General instructions
• Site selection
• Architectural plans
• Purchases required including
proprietary pointing and remote
sensing hardware and software
• Electrical installation
• A portal to help children navi-
gate to sites and applications
• Downloadable utilities
• Downloadable games
• Educational tests and remote
sensing data analysis tools
• Legal and safety related issues
References
• Children and the Internet: An experiment with minimally invasive
education in India, S. Mitra and V. Rana, CSI Communications,
pg. 12, June 1999, India (1999).
• Minimally Invasive Education For Mass Computer Literacy, Sugata
Mitra, presented at the CRIDALA 2000 conference in Hong Kong,
June 21-25, 2000.
• Children and the Internet: New Paradigms for Development in the
21st Century, Keynote address at the Asian Science and Technology
Conference in the year 2000, Tokyo, June 6, Japan (2000).
• Children and the Internet: Experiments with minimally invasive
education in India, Sugata Mitra and Vivek Rana, The British
Journal of Educational Technology, 32,2,pp 221-232 (2001)
• Minimally Invasive Education: A progress report on the “Hole-in-
the-wall” experiments, S. Mitra, The British Journal of Educational
Technology,34, 3, pp367-371 (2003)
• Minimally Invasive Education, pedagogy for development in a
connected world, S. Mitra, Invited talk at the International
conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Bibliotheca
Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt (2003)
• Improving English pronunciation – an automated instructional
approach, S. Mitra, J. Tooley, P. Inamdar and P. Dixon, Information
Technology and International Development, 1(1) pp741-83, MIT
Press (2003)
Village Gadharwan, Jammu and Kashmir, 2003

Based on the experience and data

gathered over the last four years, it
can be argued that such “play-
ground” access points should be a
part of every primary school.
Where primary schools are not
available, such facilities could pro-
vide even more vital “emergency”
educational inputs.
MIE for children through pub-

24 i4d | February 2004

 I NTEGRATING R OLE OF T EACHERS
Geo-informatics in
higher education
Education in Geo-informatics has under-
gone remarkable development with the
introduction of a number of related cours-
es at graduate and postgraduate level in
India. By 2004 one may even find it being
named as at least one of the many papers
in different undergraduate colleges teach-
ing Geography, Geology, Planning or oth-
Seema M Parihar er Geo-Sciences. However, the curriculum
Reader in Geography leaves something to be desired particularly
Kirori Mal College in the relatively non-professional colleges.
New Delhi In many cases, the lack of required infra-
parihars@vsnl.com structure, combined with partially trained
teachers, indicates that the curriculum is
still at a nascent stage. Introduction of information and commu-
nication technology (ICT) can provide solutions with inputs from
both within and outside. Execution of ICT requires new compe-
tencies of faculty members. The burden of integrating e-learn-
ing lies mainly on the shoulders of the teachers, therefore, any
planned process should take into account the capabilities and
limitations of the teachers and should be directed as steps and
manner that suit each teacher. Teachers can get more and more
creative in integrating all possible interaction as the experience
with the course evolves and as the overall experience of the col-
lege teacher evolves. Undoubtedly, digital learning resources have
the power, if developed and deployed appropriately, to signifi-
cantly enhance the learning experience in Geo-informatics. Teach-
ers will, however, always be needed.
ICT and teaching faculty in higher education
On a college campus there are constant reminders that knowl-
edge acquisition is the main focus. In that sense the campus of
an institution of higher education may be viewed as a “safe ha-
ven”. Higher education focuses on how to maintain the “trust-
ing environment” image where students can be stimulated to
acquire knowledge on certain subjects, evaluate their level of learn-
ing, and in the process enhance their own value proposition
through existing faculty. Therefore, somewhere ICT have to cre-
ate surrounding environment trustworthy enough to build con-
fidence to fall in the category of ‘sure learning’. In ignoring this,
the crevice between conflicting agendas of University and tech-
no-industry will widen.
However, it may be basically assumed that a higher education
teacher already has a viewpoint on the subject matter s/he
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
teaches and an opinion on how it should be taught. A teacher
usually has some teaching material he had already accumulated,
prepared and used. Different branches have different terminolo-
gy, different learning objectives, different emphasizes, etc. For
example in remote sensing evaluating the patterns emerging from
spectral signature can be one learning objective, while in GIS –
thematic linkages and query analysis is important learning ob-
jectives. If dealt appropriately, these can be readily augmented in
designing reusable learning objects.
Nevertheless, ready availability of technology in institute of
higher education may not necessarily propel ICT integration in
traditional academic set-up. This is despite the fact that in June
2001, Kirori Mal College became the first institute where suc-
cessful on-line admissions process was completed in India. De-
spite this the academic dimension is almost missing. Although it
made statements about the needs to promote the use of ICT on
a fitness for purpose basis, it did not provide any clear direction
or states how ICT should be used. For that matter, up to now
the institutional teaching and learning strategy had said little in
depth about the potential for exploitation of ICT. What emerges
is a fact that, the solutions may target measures revolving around
faculty with Technology and Students integrated around it.
But in doing so, in traditional higher education there exists
certain bottlenecks, which underlie even after the availability of
the required technology. They are common for any discipline.
The identified bottlenecks in the introduction of ICT in tradi-
tional academic set-up are:
• teachers have to make a move to new education, but they lack
time;
• teachers fear that ICT will dislocate them;
• teachers are unsure of the security provisions for their study
material, and
• perceived unreliability of networked services and local com-
puting services.
The reasons to have a stated policy for on-line learning develop-
ments revolving around teachers emerges from a fact that they
are the major spearhead of anchoring learning ships to the shores.
The policy should therefore aim at:
• making faculty more accessible to students with all types of
study needs,
• increasing the potential for innovative forms of study, thus
improving the quality of our offering through geovisualiza-
tion
25
• providing flexibility of study mode and giving students of all
type an extra skill by increasing their exposure to the spatial
datasets which otherwise may not be readily available to them
• remaining competitive because increased exchange of study
material will nurture quick updates especially relevant in fast
expanding spatial data infrastructure
The sharing and dissemination of good practices is popular with
staff developers in western academic institutes. However, it is
important to remember that what is a good practice in one situ-
ation may not be for another. This is particularly true with re-
spect to the use of ICT to support teaching and learning where
the success of an approach can be very context specific. In dis-
seminating ICT, the approach should shift from a complex tech-
nology approach to simple technology approach. The
over-emphasis of service providers on the complex technology, is
a turn off to most staff who want simple ideas and ideally, simple
technologies to help them deliver the pedagogic model that they
are comfortable with. This is not to say that technology should
drive the pedagogic approach but rather, the technology devel-
opers (who, maybe, are from outside India) should have faith in
existing faculty to use any new technological expertise sensibly,
to facilitate and improve student learning.
Faculty’s reaction to ICT
Evaluation data were collected from the faculty members with
an open ended questionnaire and at times informal discussions
and chats. The sample comprises the lecturers, readers and pro-
fessors teaching in University of Delhi. Based on the comments
and administrators experiences, following observations are worth
mentioning:
• For the most part, teachers possessed basic computer skills.
Unlike the scenario a few years ago, the initial resistance to
computers had gone down.
• Initially, the teachers were primarily concerned with their own
comfort levels in adopting the new technology (self concern).
Having acquired competence in this area, their focus shifted
to implementation (task concern). Having gone through these
two stages, their concern moved on to how the innovations
could help their students to learn.
• The negative impact of unreliable networked systems also
emerges as a problem in effecting the integration of learning
technology as depicted in previous writings.
• The faculty only wishes to be introduced to the platform and
at least initially was not interested in further training. The
interest is in the newness and not in real implementation.
• Faculty who have been introduced to the platform and who
are interested in training, are mainly concerned about the
performance or the instrumental use of the platform and about
the management of the platforms (students) they expected
(task concerned).
• Even after crossing time hurdle, insufficient follow–up sup-
port at local level defers use.
• Most faculty members seem to adhere to a teacher centered
vision on teaching and learning in an academic set-up.
• Many teachers feared that the ICT would dislocate them.
26
Thus, before actual adoption of e-learning the mindset
deters its augmentation. However, history teaches us just
the opposite. The new forms tend to add to rather than
dislocate: video or DVD has not replaced cinema, T.V has
not displaced radio and neither books have been replaced
by Internet.
• Over expectations deterred few teachers. This was conse-
quent of sheer hype generated by new medium with too
many colorful demos, just as it happened in the bursting
of nineties dot.com start ups which rapidly came to be seen
as up-starts without a strong foundation. So slow and steady
ushering of ICT through blending learning may increase
users.
• Many teachers fear that the privacy of their study material
is at stake. Due to sharing proposition many of them fear
its use. The incentives however may check this.
• Variation in success rate of colleges and schools in usher-
ing ICT emerges from a fact that the approach of imple-
mentation is different. Whereas in most schools and even
in private or trust run academic institutes of higher educa-
tion, there is top-bottom approach with compulsory bind-
ing for faculty to use it. In most autonomous colleges there
is a freedom for teachers to use it.
• With respect to the design of the learning environment
created in the modules, assignments and discussions among
participants created opportunities to express doubts and
uncertainties. For many teachers it was a relief to observe
that faculty members other than themselves share similar
experiences and questions.
Incremental processes
For an effective role of a teacher in a traditional educational set-
up, one envisages a process that enables a teacher to stick to his
conceptions of the subject matter and to the way he believes the
subject matter should be taught. Following the basic guidelines
of digital learning, a teacher may be provided with open and
flexible facilities to put his course on the web. In addition vari-
ous facilities to share and negotiate possible tags with other teach-
ers from same specialization and the technical team (may be from
outside) be provided as an incentive. In digital learning, this is
important to maintain the interest of a traditional teacher.
The incremental process includes three different processes:
one for an individual teacher, a second for a group of teachers
teaching similar topics such as teaching GIS to varied audiences
and a third the whole group of the college teachers or the faculty
of or any other institute of higher education. A technical team
supports all of these incremental processes. It is assumed that a
teacher gradually improves his course by adding content, inter-
action facilities by interaction with the learning material or in-
teraction among students, etc., through reuse of his learning
materials and maybe even learning materials of his colleagues.
The group of teachers of similar courses incrementally, with the
help of the technical group, establishes a dictionary of metadata
tags that enable sharing and reuse of learning materials. The re-
usable learning objects created by faculty members can thus be-
come academic outputs just like printed books written by them.
i4d | February 2004
As for the third process, the college gradually establishes norms
and procedures for developing e-Learning within the college,
which enables reusability, collaboration among teachers and some
standard interaction facilities for students with creation of Cen-
tral Support System (CCS).
Creation of Central Support System has many advantages.
The main advantages for the teachers, if they augment digital
learning in teaching geoinformatics through CCS are:
• Teachers can concentrate on content without worrying about
style and formatting.
• Teachers can reuse learning materials. These materials can be
their own before or during the processes creating an online
course, and can also be learning materials of other teachers.
• Content modules can be used in other contexts as in related
courses for different skill levels.
• Automatic generation of Indexes, summaries and glossaries.
• Evolvement of a community of practice.
Competencies required
The ultimate aim of augmenting ICT in traditional classrooms
is to enable reliable teaching –learning environment. Such use
requires faculty members to have two main competencies:
• to be able to use the e-learning platform instrumentally, and
• to be able to reflect systematically upon one’s own education-
al practice.
The first competency requires that the faculty member be aware
of the platform’s different functionalities. This implies that the
user can anticipate how the digital learning environment will
appear to the learner and how it will change over time, depend-
ing on how faculty can put limits on certain functionalities.
The second competency is more complicated mainly because
the process encompasses several other competencies. Faculty
members need insight into the processes of teaching and learn-
ing. These vary between institutions. The teacher must also be
able to design different educational learning environment.
Changing faculty’s conception
A fundamental gap between the initial and desired situations in
the teaching–learning environment emerges from faculty con-
ceptions. To bridge this gap it is important to address the partic-
ipant’s inherent teaching attitudes. Changing conceptions
however is not an easy thing to do . There are four critical ele-
ments in Ho’s model that can guide the conceptual change:
• self awareness of one’s teaching conception
• confrontation between one’s own conception and practices and
between one’s own conceptions and conception of the others.
• exposure to better, alternative conceptions
• commitment building and refreezing
Before faculty members will adopt a new conception, it has to be
intelligible, plausible and fruitful. This would imply that there is
an emotional element involved as well. The faculty’s interaction
with new technology illustrates that teachers only evolve from
one stage of concern to another only if the previous questions or
doubts regarding self or task are answered and visually demon-
strated. Solutions to these concerns are necessary in order to
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
The sharing and dissemination of
good practices is popular.
However, it is important to
remember that what is a good
practice in one situation may not
be for another
attain conceptual change.
Design principles
To improve the functions and functionalities of the e-learning
platform, maybe indigenously developed or purchased from out-
side like Blackboard and Web communication technology, de-
sign principles must include two way solutions:
• one to provoke conceptual change in the Faculty’s mind-set
during training
• second to take into account the participant Faculty’s stages of
concern
In order to provoke conceptual change in the participants dur-
ing implementation it is important to have planned training ses-
sions, which may include:
• digital learning environment in the form of model or e-learn-
ing platform offered to faculty users to distinguish different
components of learning environment and their interdepend-
ency. This will enable them to analyze their own teaching prac-
tice with other participants and thus, will confront them with
other conceptions and practices.
• Integrate the faculty’s teaching practice into the training by
sharing it as a case study with related group. It will allow par-
ticipants to confront their conceptions to their own actual
practice and hopefully creative actual practice will add to what
is learned during training session.
• Elaborate the global scenario in today’s education concept with
emphasis on wide knowledge base accumulating daily and
readily available too crossing the borders. It offers the faculty
an example of an alternative or even better teaching concep-
tion than what they adhere to.
• Integrate first realizations of faculty’s learning to the training
programme, thus enacting as stimulants to continue the use
of e-learning platform.
In order to take into account the participants’ concern one can
identify next principles. The learning strategies should include
the teachers’ requirements to enable the success rate:
• As teachers prefer to learn and receive support ‘just in time’,
the `just in time support’ becomes mandatory for the success
in Higher education teaching faculty.
27
• As teachers prefer to learn at their own speed and in their own
surroundings, some flexible learning modules be prepared by
the experts for teaching faculty.
• In order to be able to respond ‘just in time’ when faculty mem-
bers move from one stage of concern to another, individual
support should be available at any time and on request.
• Also, some shared material and links be made available on the
platform to enable immediate support. This may be in the
form of maps, imageries, graphs, tables, symbols, etc.
• As teachers are used to community feeling, creating and main-
taining lively online communities becomes important.
Conclusion
Teaching and learning is a process, not a problem. Therefore all
solutions in learning for higher education in Geoinformatics need
to consider the teaching-learning process and not just prepara-
tion of stand-alone reusable learning objects. A balanced and
appropriate approach is required. One where there is no single
answer, but a whole pack of them based on individual faculty’s
mind-set. Successful education of geo-informatics will involve
multiple forms of teaching and learning in order to engage, stim-
ulate and extend the learner. Teaching-learning resources should
be created to support teaching and learning rather than replace
them. The e-learning resources need to be as generic and as reus-
able as possible across the broad educational landscape and must
be versatile enough to accomodate different levels and styles of
teaching and learning. Disability issues and technological con-
straints must be considered. To achieve last aim, emergent meta-
data and interoperability issues had to be addressed. Further,
denying the right dose of faculty’s involvement with visual in-
centives can slowdown the process. Certainly, for long-term
integration of ICT in enhancing GIS Instructional Approaches
pivotal role of teaching faculty cannot be ignored especially if
academics enhancement is an agenda and not otherwise. 
References
Parihar, S.M. (2001) Higher Education in Spatial Information
Industry: A Case for Promoting Mutual Interest, URL http://
www.gisdevelopment.net/education/papers/edpa0014pf.htm (Visited 7/5/
2003). pp 6-7
Butler, D.L. and M. Selbom., (2002), “Barriers to Adopting
Editorial calendar of i4d
Issue Theme
March ICT and health
April Wireless communication
May ICT for the poor
June Local language content
Please submit articles to info@i4donline.net. Editorial guidelines are available online at www.i4donline.net
28
Technology”, Educause Quarterly, 25, 2, 22-28.
Butler, J., (1997), Which is more Frustrating : achieving Institutional
Change or Herding Cats? Active Learning, 6, 1-3.
Hohnbaum, C., and S. Grasset (2002) Creating New Learning Model
to Avoid Skill Gaps and to Fulfill the Future Needs of the Knowledge
Society, the New Educational Benefits of ICT in Higher Education,
Rotterdam, 2-4 September 2002.
Tillema, H.H. (2000) “Belief Change towards self –directed learning in
student-teachers : Immersion in practice of reflection on action”, Teaching
and Teacher Education , 16 (5-6), 575-591.
Gilbert, S.W (2000) A New Vision Worth Working Toward –
Connected Education and Collaborative Change (WWW Document)
URL http://www.tiltgroup.org/gilbert / NewVwwt2000-2-14-00.htm
(Visited 2003, Feb,01)
Ho, A.S.P. (2000) A Conceptual Change Approach to Staff Development
: A model for programa design, The International Journal for Academic
Development, 5 (1) , 30-41.
Ibid.
Hangreaves, A.L. Earl & S. Moore (2001) Learning to Change : Teaching
Beyond Subjects and Standards, San Francisco : Jossey Bass.
Hammond, N., et.al (1992) Blocks to the Effective Use of IT in
Higher Education, Compuers and Education, 18,2, 155-162.
Bennett,R., (2001) “Lecturers’ Attitudes towards New Teaching Methods”,
The International Journal of Management Education, (LTSN Buisiness,
Management and Accountancy Centre) 2, 1,42-58.
Daniel, J.S. (1998) Mega Universities and Knowledge Media, London:
Kogan Page.
Laga, E.S. and J. Ellen (2001) Characterstics of Support Initiative to
Stimulate Professional Development on ICT in J. Price , et.al., eds.,
Proceedings of SITE 2001, Mar 5-10, 2001, 692-697, Norfolk, V.A.
:L Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.
Bates, A.W.., (1997) Restructuring the University for Technological
Change, Paper presented to the Carnegie Foundation for the
Advancement of Teaching, 18-20 June, London. Available at: http://
bates.cstudies.ubc.ca/
Korthagen, F.A.J. & Kessels, J.P.A.M (1999) “Linking Theory and
Practice: Changing Pedagogy of Teacher Eduation”, Education
Researcher, 28 (4), 4-17.
Submission of articles
15 March, 2004
30 March, 2004
30 April, 2004
15 May, 2004
i4d | February 2004
 P ERSPECTIVE

Information for
development
When talking about information for development it may
be useful to first outline what we are talking about
When talking about information for de- one would need information on natural resources and socio-eco-
velopment it may be useful to first outline nomic parameters, such as income and income distribution, lan-
Karl Harmsen what we are talking about. The notion ‘in- guage, caste, class, and the role of gender, whereas the target
Director, CSSTE-AP formation’ has (at least) two aspects: the audience may be district-level planning officers or extension
India content of the information, that is, what agents, or farmers organizations. It is important to note that one
karl@harmsen.net sort of information are we talking about, should not only define what comprises the system, but also what
and the delivery mechanism, including the is not part of it and how the system interacts with the environ-
target audience, the technology used and the sustainability of ment. In figure 1, the system is represented by a rectangle, and
the operation. The notion ‘development’ has, of course, a range the area outside the rectangle is the environment.
of aspects, including the development strategy, the policy and Once the field has been defined, one has to determine where
socio-economic environment, the institutional environment and a particular system under consideration is located in the broadly
governance, and the delivery mechanism, including target sys- defined field. In the case of a country, one can make use of the
tems, target audience, and the actors and institutions involved World Bank Indicators, the UNDP Human Development Re-
in the developmental process. ports, reports of State Planning Commissions, or reports of oth-
er organizations that work at the national level. In the case of a
Strategic analysis particular rural area, one would need information on the status
In order to produce a development strategy one needs to define of natural resources and agricultural systems, education and
the system one is talking about, identify subsystems relevant to health, socio-economics, including physical and knowledge in-
the analysis, perform strength-weakness-opportunity-threat frastructure, access to input and output markets, availability of
(SWOT) analyses for each of those subsystems (or ‘segments’) rural credit, income distribution, class or caste, ethnic parame-
and environments, define the situation one would like to reach ters, language, culture, the role of gender and many other pa-
at some stage in the future, and then design a ‘road-
map’ for implementing the strategy. Although it is
not the intention of this paper to elaborate exten-
sively on the notion of ‘strategic analysis’, I will briefly
discuss the stages of such an analysis, as it may be
relevant to actors involved in the developmental proc-
ess.
The first stage of a strategic analysis is to define
what one is talking about. This may be an entire coun-
try or region, in which case the analysis obviously
would be very complex, or it may be a rural area some-
where in South Asia, in which case the analysis may
be less complex, although not necessarily very much
so. In the case of a country or region, one would
need information on an aggregate or macro-economic
level and one would probably address policy makers
at the national level as the primary target audience.
In the case of a rural area somewhere in South Asia,

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 29

rameters. On the basis of a suitable segmentation, and an analy-
sis by segment, one can determine where a particular subsystem
is located in the broadly defined set of rural systems. In figure 2
the subsystem under consideration is represented by an open
dot within the rele-
vant set of systems.
Of course, a dot in
a rectangle is a rath-
er poor representa-
tion of the outcome
of a complex anal-
ysis, but in analogy
with the concept of
Figure 1 What are we talking about? ‘phase space’ in
physics, N coordi-
nates would determine one point in a N-dimensional space. For
example, 2 coordinates (x and y) determine one point in a 2-di-
mensional space, and three coordinates (x, y and z) determine one
point in a 3-dimensional space, and so on.
Once the position of a specific system in a set of systems has
been determined, one would have to define the developmental
objectives: what does one want to achieve and when? In the case
of a country one of
such objectives may
be to reach ‘devel-
oped country’ sta-
tus by a certain
time (e.g., 2020).
One measure for
such a status is the
Figure 2 Where are we? Segmentation. Analysis by per capita Gross
segment. Portfolio picture. National Income
(GNI per capita) of
a country, according to the methodology used by the World Bank.
Although significant as a parameter, GNI per capita does not
explicitly measure literacy, access to health services and sanitary
facilities, the role of gender, etc. One may wish to take the Hu-
man Development Index, used by UNDP, as another parameter.
Also, there may be country-specific national indicators one would
wish to use. In the case of a particular rural area, one may define
targets of income and income distribution, agricultural production
and/or diversification, conservation of natural resources, literacy,
health, infrastructure, or gender equality.
Essential elements in this process are the strategic segmenta-
tion and the SWOT analysis by segment, that is, for each of the
segments one has to determine what the strengths and weak-
nesses are of the segment under consideration, and, based on
this, what the opportunities and threats are that are posed by the
environment. For example, in India one may feel that the IT
sector is very strong, because of the availability of a highly qual-
ified, skilled and low-cost labor force (strength) but that most of
the activities in the IT sector are in the production and service
areas, rather than in the design and development of software and
systems (weakness). The globalization and outsourcing of IT ac-
tivities (including call centers, etc.) to achieve reduction in cost
by multinational corporations may be perceived as an opportu-
30
nity, but the increasing competition from other Asian countries,
the state of the global economy and the ageing and overstretched
infrastructure in the country may pose threats.
Similarly, a specific rural area may have good soils, ample water
resources and skilled labor (strengths), but may have limited ac-
cess to rural credit facilities, and input and output markets (weak-
nesses). There may be rural development schemes, which could
help the area to gain access to credit and markets (opportunity),
but the area may be far away from urban centers and thus not
able to compete with rural areas closer to such centers (threat).
The definition, by segment, of the developmental objectives,
again defines one point in the N-dimensional space referred to
earlier. This point is indicated in figure 3 by an open star.
The next step
would be to devel-
op a strategy to
reach the specified
goals within a cer-
tain timeframe.
Such a strategy
should specify the
roles of all actors
Figure 3 Where do we want to go? SWOT analysis
involved in the
by segment. Portfolio picture.
process, specify a
clear time path and contain quantifiable indicators (‘milestones’)
against which the progress can be measured (figure 4). Unless we
have such a ‘roadmap’, we cannot implement our strategy. Un-
fortunately, some development strategies do not come much fur-
ther than colorful reports on the desks of the planning agencies.
An important step in the implementation of a development
strategy is the question of change. A country or a specific rural
area have an exist-
ing infrastructure
and are involved in
a developmental
process, irrespective
of the plans we put
on the table. The
question therefore
is where we are go-
Figure 4 How do we get there? Analysis by segment.
ing if we keep do-
Implementation plan: actors, time path and
ing what we are
milestones. Portfolio picture.
doing. Do we reach
the objectives we (or the stakeholders involved in the process)
have set within a given timeframe or not? That is, where do we
go if we do not change course? This is indicated in figure 5 by
the solid arrow.
In this particular case we do not reach our target if we keep
doing what we are doing. This is not an unexpected outcome, as
one would not normally go through an elaborate process of stra-
tegic planning if one would be very pleased with the way things
are going. Normally one embarks on a strategic planning if one
fears that targets might not be reached, objectives are not clear,
or if there is no explicit strategy at all. Hence, the implementa-
tion of a development strategy will often require changes in the
way people act and things are being done. As most people tend
i4d | February 2004
to be reluctant with regard to change, the successful implemen-
tation of a development strategy requires the involvement and
commitment of all actors and institutions involved in the proc-
ess. This involvement should not start at the end of the process,
when the strategy
has already been de-
fined, but at the be-
ginning, when the
position of a sub-
system or segment
in the wider field is
examined and
Figure 5 Where do we go if we do not change course? when the develop-
mental goals are
being defined. That is, the implementation of a strategy for de-
velopment is (or should be) an iterative and participatory proc-
ess. Often this is not the case and this may well be the single
most important cause for the failure of many development
projects.
Hence, the important issue in the implementation of a devel-
opment strategy is one of change, and in most cases actors or
institutions involved would have to refocus their activities. The
refocusing of activities is an iterative process that continues until
the objectives are
fully achieved (fig-
ure 6). This is also
an important point.
In some develop-
ment projects it ap-
pears that once the
course is set, there
is no regular moni-
Figure 6 Do we want that? No? Then change course! toring and feedback
on the achieve-
ments, and within a short time one may be off course. Hence,
the implementation process requires the definition of ‘milestones’
and the regular monitoring of progress made. Results should be
discussed regularly with all actors involved and corrective meas-
ures should be taken if necessary. Another aspect is the funding
of a developmental process: in many cases funding dries up half
way the process, thus threatening the continuity of the effort.
Development plans therefore need initial funding by governments
or other donors and sound business plans to ensure the continu-
ity of the operation.
In summary, the objective of a strategic analysis is to develop
and implement a sector-wise strategy for sustainable, integrated
and equitable development of urban and rural areas, involving
the private sector, the government, the academia and NGO’s.
Specific aims could be sustained economic growth, poverty alle-
viation, achieving social emancipation of women and backward
sectors of the society, conservation of natural resources and the
environment, and others.
The issue of ‘information for development’ should be an in-
tegral part of a strategic analysis. Without access to (or the pro-
vision of ) relevant and adequate information, a development
project is unlikely to succeed. Hence, information is an essential
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
component of any developmental process and should be an inte-
gral part of the planning of such processes. Information should
be needs driven, accessible to all social strata, in all relevant lan-
guages, and in an economically sustainable fashion.
Strategic segmentation: An example
Strategic segmentation is an important part of a strategic analy-
sis. One has to differentiate between systems and identify their
essential components. If the object of analysis is a country or a
state (province), four systems or segments may be distinguished:
Urban Systems, Urban Fringe/Slum Systems, High-Input Agri-
cultural Systems, and Low-Input Agricultural Systems (see fig-
ure 7). Of course, one could think of other forms of segmentation
and the four systems referred to are still defined at a fairly high
level of abstraction, but they represent recognizable entities in
the geographical space and have some relevance with regard to
the provision of information for development.
Urban systems refer to the cities where most of the private
sector driven economic development takes place. Urban systems
are connected with each other and with the outside world (ar-
row in figure 7). They interact strongly with high-input agricul-
tural systems, as they depend on them for their food supply. At
the same time, they provide inputs for these systems, including
knowledge and information.
Urban systems have highly
developed information
3 infrastructures: written
media, telephones, ra-
2 dio, TV, satellite
1 4 communications and
Internet connectivity.
Of course, ‘urban sys-
tems’ could be further
Figure 7 differentiated, for exam-
ple, in cities with more and
cities with less than, say, one million people. The information
needs of these systems would include: e-governance, job oppor-
tunities, availability of products, services and markets, including
housing, health and education, global markets, travel, immigra-
tion and visa procedures, global educational and job opportuni-
ties, and access to Internet for information, chatting, music,
fashion, movies, etc.
Urban fringe or slum systems are the areas surrounding cities
where the urban poor assemble and where most of the rural poor
that migrate to the cities end up. Generally, infrastructure, and
access to health, education, housing and sanitation are poor. In-
teraction with the prosperous urban systems is largely limited to
the provision of cheap, unskilled labor. Interaction with the more
prosperous high-input agricultural systems is also quite limited,
as the purchasing power of the peri-urban poor is limited. Many
of the people in the urban fringe systems depend on government
schemes and subsidies for their livelihood. The information needs
of these systems would include: e-governance, housing, sanita-
tion, drinking water, health, education and other community
services, subsidies, projects and schemes of the Government and
NGO’s, and job opportunities.
31
 High-input agricultural systems are generally producing for an increasing (urban) population. Increases in food production
rural or urban markets. They need access to credit, transporta- have to come from increases in productivity per unit arable land
tion, and input and output markets. Farms are relatively large rather than from expansion of the arable land area. The problem
and are often located on the better soils, have access to (irriga- of low availability of arable land is compounded by increasing
tion) water, use improved crop varieties, fertilizers and biocides, land degradation, through salinization and/or alkalinization of
as well as fossil fuels for their agricultural machinery. In addi- irrigated land, soil pollution, soil erosion and nutrient mining,
tion, they often use local labor during planting and harvest. They and is further compounded by the loss of biodiversity, disrupt-
interact strongly with urban systems, but their interaction with ing natural ecosystems, and the exhaustion of groundwater re-
urban fringe systems and low-input agricultural systems is large- sources and deterioration of their quality.
ly limited to the use of contractual or daily labor and the provi-
sion of food at subsidized prices. The information needs of these
systems would include: e-governance, agriculture and extension
services, weather forecasts, input and output markets, transpor-
tation, credit facilities, subsidies, prices, off-farm job opportuni-
ties, education and health (tele-)services, and Internet
connectivity.
Low-input agricultural systems still make up the largest part
of the rural space in most low-income countries in Asia. They
are basically subsistence systems and often located on the more
marginal lands in relatively remote areas, have no access to irri-
gation water, other than supplementary irrigation for vegetable
crops, and use little, if any, inputs in agriculture, other than lan-
draces, organic manures and their own labor. Infrastructure is
generally poor and access to health, education, information and
other services is limited. Interaction with other systems is limit- The trends in the availability of land resources are also rather
ed to the provision of labor and some products, such as fruits, disturbing. In India, arable land resources decreased from 0.35
forest products, herbs, and products of home or cottage indus- hectare per capita in 1960 to 0.16 hectare per capita in 2000. If
tries, such as baskets, handlooms, and others. There is a need for this trend continues, these numbers would be 0.108 hectare per
off-farm labor opportunities and there would be scope for estab- capita in 2020 and 0.073 hectare per capita in 2040. Of course,
lishing small-scale industries, provided infrastructure, accessibil-
ity and connectivity can be improved. The information needs of
these systems would include: e-governance, agriculture, crops,
varieties, control of pests and diseases, agro-forestry, rural devel-
opment schemes, e.g., soil and water conservation, or in situ
biodiversity conservation, off-farm job opportunities, education,
health- and sanitation-services and access to safe drinking water,
and disaster management: where to go, what to do.
The information needs are only given as examples, and are
not intended to be comprehensive nor necessarily listed in order
of priority. They are meant to illustrate that the information needs
differ between systems: poor people do not need information on
the NY Stock Exchange or car loans, whereas the high-income
sections of the society would not be (or less) interested in rural
development schemes or community services.
Strategic segmentation: Trends in time and extrapolation of an historic trend is questionable, and popula-
space tion growth, the major factor in the declining per capita arable
In order to identify threats and opportunities one should first land resources may well decrease, thus slowing down the expect-
try to assess the trends in the development of the system under ed decline. On the other hand, loss of arable land due to urban
consideration. Two examples of such trends are given below: avail- expansion, infra-structural needs and other factors may well in-
able land resources and urbanization. crease. Therefore, the conclusion seems to be justified that per
Per capita available arable land is low in South (SA) and East capita arable land resources will decline significantly over the
Asia (EA), in the range of 0.11-0.16 hectares. This is much low- next decades, while the demand for food will be increasing. This
er than the available land resources in the high-income countries will put increasing pressure on the available land resources and
(H) and also well below the world average (W). The implication India can only keep feeding its growing population if the pro-
is that there is an enormous pressure on the land, in order to feed ductivity of the existing arable land is increased significantly. What

32 i4d | February 2004

applies to India, applies to many other countries in the region, Asia is not visible at all, and East Asia appears as a tiny little bar.
notably China, where arable land resources are already at a low Both regions are also below the world average. Poverty remains
of about 0.11 hectare per capita. the main problem of the region and poverty alleviation should
Another trend is the increasing urbanization. At present, most probably be the major objective of government policies for dec-
of the population in Asia is still living in the rural areas and ades to come. Even though economic growth in many countries
urbanization is below the world average and far below the level in Asia is impressive, in the range of 5-10% per annum, the overall
of urbanization in the high-income countries. However, urban- effect of this on poverty may still be fairly limited. One reason
ization in Asia has increased significantly over the past two dec-
ades and this trend may be expected to continue in the future,
driven by rural poverty and the growth of urban economies. This
trend will necessitate the creation of job opportunities in the
urban centers and put further pressure on the land resources avail-
able for agricultural production.

for this is that much of the economic growth is concentrated in

Socio-Economic and policy environment
The Asian region is highly complex and Asian countries cov-
er a wide range of developmental stages, ranging from very
poor to highly developed, and with widely different degrees
of access to natural and human resources. Asia as a whole has
a tremendous potential and is likely to be the economic pow-
erhouse of the future. However, in the present situation there
are still serious constraints to socio-economic development,
which have to be overcome in order to realize the potential of
the region. These constraints range from poverty and igno-
rance, and unresolved conflicts that result in high military
expenditures in the region, to deterioration of limited natural
resources and regularly occurring natural disasters. A few of
these constraints will be briefly discussed in the following sec-
tions. However one should be clear that this listing is by no
means complete nor does it even necessarily cover the most
important issues.
the larger urban areas and has little effect on the rural poor, and
another reason is the logic that 10 times a small number is still a
small number. For example, if India would double its GNI per
capita in 10 years, this would result in a GNI per capita of the
order of 900 US$ per capita. No doubt, this would be a com-
mendable achievement, and much needed by the country, but
900 US$ is still a fairly low GNI per capita, also in view of the
fact that other countries are also likely to increase their GNI per
capita and their economic competitiveness during the same pe-
riod. Hence, India would still be at the lower end of the eco-
nomic spectrum, even though a doubling of the GNI per capita
may be expected to have a significant positive effect on the Indi-
an society.
The problem of low GNI per capita in the region is further
compounded by unequal income distributions in many Asian
countries. Although this phenomenon, of course, is not limited
to Asia, it appears that some of the poorer Asian countries have
more unequal distributions than, for example, high-income coun-

GNI per capita: Poverty

One issue that is no doubt important is the prevailing poverty in
the region. In a number of countries, tremendous economic
progress has been made over the past decades. However, in many
countries, poverty, illiteracy and ignorance still persist. South
Asia alone has more absolute poor (people living on less than the
equivalent of 1 US$ a day) than all of Africa.
When the GNI per capita of the high-income countries is
plotted on the same scale as that of South and East Asia, South

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 33

tries in Europe. This implies that the gap between rich and poor
tends to be higher, in relative terms, in some of the poorer Asian
countries than in the higher-income countries in the region (e.g.,
Japan has a notably ‘flatter’ income distribution). This implies
that the equitable distribution of economic growth (income)
among the different strata of the population is a major issue.
It may be noted here that it is difficult to see how such differ-
ences in GNI per capita in the world (and within countries) could
be sustainable in the long run. It would seem that high-income
countries would have to urgently address the issue of poverty
and unequal distribution of wealth between countries. Similarly,
developing countries would have to address the issue of unequal
income distributions. In my view it is unlikely that the persist-
ence of such gross inequities in the world could, in the long run,
generate a stable and peaceful world (free of ‘terrorism’).
the World Bank uses the concept of Purchasing Power Parity
Current revenue and government spending (PPP) (e.g., The World Bank, 2002, 2003a). For example, in a
Other issues relevant to development strategies are the revenue country like India, the purchasing power of 1 US$ is about 5.2
collection by national governments, and the way government times higher than in the USA. However, the PPP factor tends to
budgets are spent. Current revenues are low (less than half ) in decline quite steeply with increasing GNI per capita. This is il-
Asia as compared to the high-income countries and the world lustrated in the figure below, where the PPP factors of Asian
average. countries are plotted against GNI per capita. The decrease in the
PPP factor implies that the ‘advantage’ of a high PPP factor, that
is, a relatively high purchasing power of the US$ in a low-in-
come country, is quickly dissipated if the per capita income in-
creases, reflecting an increased cost of living as a corollary of
economic growth. The decrease in PPP does not only affect real
economic growth in terms of purchasing power, it also poses
problems to sections of the society that are lagging in economic
growth, such as low-input agricultural systems.

In other words, in the region with the highest number of ab-

solute poor in the world, where poverty alleviation is (or should
be) the highest priority, government budgets are less than half
the world average, in terms of % of Gross Domestic Product
(GDP). The high payments for interest on domestic and inter-
national loans, and the high military expenses, due to unresolved
ethnic conflicts or disputes between countries, compound this
problem.
In summary, low-income countries in Asia not only face pov-
erty and unequal income distributions, but also low current rev-
enues and high expenditures for servicing of debts and military The notion of PPP implies that a country like India, with a
expenditures. As a result, government budgets for alleviating GNI per capita of 450 US$ in 2000, would have a much higher
poverty are relatively low and probably much lower than required per capita income in terms of purchasing power: 2340 PPP$ per
to solve the problem of poverty within a reasonable timeframe. capita. However, what applies to India also applies to other coun-
Hence, alleviating poverty in the world is a global issue, and not tries. Hence, whereas India is no. 159/60 in the US$ ranking,
just a national concern between Zimbabwe and Guinea, it is no. 153 in the PPP$ rank-
ing, still in between Zimbabwe (which has moved up a few plac-
Purchasing power parity es) and Guinea. Of course, these data relate to the year 2000 and
It is a well-known fact that 1 US$ has a higher purchasing power do not, among others, reflect the recent economic problems be-
in low-income countries than in the USA. To account for this, ing faced by Zimbabwe, but they illustrate a trend.

34 i4d | February 2004


Economic growth
There appears to be some mysticism regarding the issue of PPP
when calculating economic growth. In some calculations, the
GNI in PPP dollars is taken as the basis for calculating econom-
ic growth. This logic would imply, however, that if a country
had reached the same level of income as the USA, that the PPP
factor would still be, say, 5 or more. Unfortunately, this is un-
likely to be the case. When the GNI per capita increases, the
PPP factor decreases. For example, in a country like Japan, the
PPP factor is actually smaller than 1, reflecting the fact that 1
US$ has a lower purchasing power in Japan than in the USA.
If we take India as an example, and assume for simplicity that
the rest of the world would be at zero GNI per capita growth
during the rest of this century, whereas India’s GNI per capita
would grow at 5% per year, then it would take some 62 years for
India to reach high-income or developed country status, i.e., a
GNI per capita of 9,266 US$ in 1999 (The World Bank, 2002).
The GNI per capita in PPP$ would then be 20,152 $ per capita.
If India’s GNI per capita would grow at 10% per year under the
same conditions, then it would take about 32 years to reach this
level. Unfortunately, even an assumption of a sustained growth
in GNI per capita of 5% per year in real terms already seems to
be fairly optimistic, as the population keeps growing (currently
at slightly less than 2% per year in India) and the economies of
the high-income countries also keep growing. The figure below
illustrates that the PPP factor decreases when the GNI per capita
increases: in relative terms the difference between US$ and PPP$
is largest in the lower range, in absolute terms the difference is
larger in the middle range.
Hence, it may be concluded that it is likely to take several
decades before a country like India would have reached ‘devel-
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
oped-country’ status, defined in economic terms (i.e., high-in-
come status). However, in terms of social and other parameters
relevant to the well-being of the population, much progress could
be made if the development strategy is sharply focused on those
parameters.
Institutions and governance
It has been argued that developing countries need good govern-
ance and appropriate institutions in order to realize balanced
and sustained socio-economic development. ‘Good governance’
refers to a situation of democracy, appropriate institutions, so-
cial justice, transparent procedures, respect for human rights,
the absence of corruption, and related factors.
The issue of corruption is yet another aspect that needs atten-
tion. As there are few objective measures of ‘good governance’,
the ‘Corruption Perceptions Index’ (CPI) may be taken as a proxy
for good governance. The CPI appears to be one of the few in-
ternational measures for ‘good governance’ currently available.
Clearly, this indicator is far from being perfect, as it is based on
‘perceptions’, but it shows consistent trends over the years and
allows for a comparison across countries. If the data are plotted
against the logarithm of GNI per capita for the Asian countries
in the survey (in 2002), the following picture emerges.
The relation between CPI and GNI per capita suggests
that real economic progress would not be possible without
reforming the governance system and rooting out corruption.
Although there may be no direct causal link between CPI and
GNI per capita, the fact that all of the low-income countries
have low CPI scores and that none of the high-income coun-
tries have low CPI scores seems to point at a significant rela-
tionship.
In this connection it may be noted that a global survey of
30,487 people in 44 countries (Transparency International,
2003) showed that people tend to be most concerned about
corruption in political parties (29.7%), followed by the judi-
ciary (13.7%) and the police (11.5%). Another outcome was
that 42.1% of the people believe that corruption will get worse,
27.1% that it will remain the same, and 20% that it will de-
crease (10.8% had no opinion). For India, these numbers were
74.3% (worse), 13.6% (same), 7.9% (less) and 4.1% (no opin-
35
ion). These perceptions are not very encouraging and under-
line that issues of corruption and good governance need ur-
gent attention.
Information and technology
As most of the larger urban centers in Asia seem to be well-
connected, the scope for information technology might well
be in the smaller urban centers and the high-input agricul-
tural systems, where people would be able to pay for
information services. In the urban fringe and the low-input
agricultural systems there, it is expected that there would be
less scope for information technology, because of the prevail-
ing poverty and other priorities, such as social equity and
emancipation, education, health, housing, sanitation, drink-
ing water, physical infrastructure and job opportunities. Also,
the need here might be more for written media, telephone,
radio or TV, rather than for Internet connectivity. Neverthe-
less, information services such as e-governance (e.g., cadastral
maps linked to land records) could be important if they are
part of development schemes supported by long-term gov-
ernment funding. In general, it will be a challenging task to
develop sustainable delivery mechanisms for information in
remote rural areas, because of the prevailing poverty, illitera-
cy, lack of infrastructure (e.g., electricity), high cost of
maintenance of information technology, the need to provide
information in local languages, problems of class, caste and
gender, etc.
Also one may be required to overcome resistance to change
in order to reach the poorest sections of the society, e.g., the
ruling sections of the rural society may not be very keen on
empowering the poorer sections and provide them with in-
formation and education aimed at improving their socio-eco-
nomic conditions. In addition, providing information would
only be useful if such an effort would be linked to sustained
funding and an appropriate institutional environment.
Finally it should be noted that any technology is only a
tool, which in itself does not have the capacity to solve any
problem. IT will do nothing, unless people make intelligent
use of the technology as an integrated part of the implemen-
tation of a strategy aimed at equitable, integrated and sus-
tainable development, supported by appropriate institutions.
Or, to quote Mark Malloch Brown: “Indeed, the belief that
there is a technological silver bullet that can solve illiteracy,
ill health or economic failure reflects scant understanding of
real poverty”.
Conclusions
For the successful implementation of IT one needs a clear and
transparent development strategy, implemented in a governance,
institutional and policy environment conducive to change and
socio-economic development. Issues that require special consid-
Want to contribute to i4d?
Send your articles to info@i4donline.net
(please read our Editorial Guidelines on page17)
36
eration include poverty alleviation and equitable income distri-
bution, increasing government revenues and decreasing defense
spending, and the establishment of good governance and appro-
priate institutions. Poverty alleviation will require strong gov-
ernment involvement and commitment, as well as collaboration
and coordination between development agencies. Technology is
not the limiting factor in the developmental process. Lack of
development strategies, commitment of government agencies, a
non-conducive policy environment, poor governance, lack of ap-
propriate institutions or human factors are more likely to be lim-
iting. IT can play an important role in the developmental process.
To quote James D. Wolfensohn from the World Bank, 2002:
“Eradicating poverty is the greatest challenge of our age, and the
greatest weapon we have to fight poverty is knowledge”. 
References
Abdul Kalam, A.P.J., with Y.S. Rajan, 1998. India 2020. A Vision for
the New Millennium. Penguin Books India Ltd., New Delhi.
Chaudhuri, Malay K., and Arindam Chaudhuri, 2003. The Great
Indian Dream. MacMillan India Ltd., Delhi.
Chossudovsky, Michel, 1997. The Globalisation of Poverty : Impacts of
IMF and World Bank Reforms. Other India Press, Goa.
Harmsen, K., 2003. Exploring compatibilities: Geoinformatics in South
and East Asia. GIS Development 7(2): 19-24.
Keniston, Kenneth, 2003. IT for the common man: Lessons from India.
i4d 1(1): 4-13.
McQuarrie, Donald A., 2003. Statistical Mechanics. Viva Books Pvt
Ltd, New Delhi.
Planning Commission, Government of India, 2003. India’s Five Year Plans.
Complete Documents. First Five Year Plan (1961-56) to Tenth Five Year
Plan (2002-2007). Academic Foundation, New Delhi.
The World Bank, 2002. World Development Indicators 2002. The World
Bank, Washington.
The World Bank, 2003a. World Development Indicators 2003. The
World Bank, Washington.
The World Bank, 2003b. World Development Report 2003. Sustainable De-
velopment in a Dynamic World. Transforming Institutions, Growth, and
Quality of Life. The World Bank, Washington.
The World Bank, 2003c. World Development Report 2004. Making Services
Work for Poor People. The World Bank, Washington.
Transparency International, 1995-2003. Corruption Perceptions Index.
Transparency International, 2003. Global Corruption Barometer Survey.
UNDP, 2001. Human Development Report 2001. Making Technologies
Work for Human Development. UNDP, New York.
UNDP, 2002. Human Development Report 2002. Deepening Democracy
in a Fragmented World. UNDP, New York.
i4d | February 2004

 Book review
Transforming e-Knowledge:
A revolution in the sharing of
knowledge
By Donald Norris, Jon Mason and
Paul Lefrere
2003 Society for College and
University Planning
(www.scup.org), Michigan
164 pages
“Transforming e-Knowledge” is an in-
formative analysis of the evolving stand-
ards and cross-sectoral synergies in
e-learning, digital content publishing and
organisational knowledge management,
along with associated business models,
capacity-building issues and leadership
imperatives.
The rich online companion
(www.transformingeknowledge.info) in-
cludes a searchable glossary, bibliogra-
phy, case studies, and other resources.
The book is sponsored by an
Education.au, SCT, WebCT, Knowledge
Media and Mobilearn.
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
Donald Norris is the president of US-
based Strategic Initiatives Inc., and also
author of “Transforming Higher Educa-
tion” and “E-business in Education.” Jon
Mason is the assistant director of IMS
Australia. Paul Lefrere is director of net-
working and partnerships at the Centre for
Educational Technology Interoperability
Standards at the University of Wales and
British Open University.
The material is divided into seven chap-
ters, covering issues like knowledge futures,
evolution of e-learning modules and stand-
ards, Web services infrastructure, profes-
sional communities of practice, and
recommendations for policymakers.
New technology environments — par-
ticularly the Internet, Intranet and wire-
less media — are transforming the very
way knowledge is experienced and trans-
formed, triggering off a cascading cycle of
reinvention of education (e.g. just-in-time
learning) and organisational collaboration
(e.g. tradecraft knowledge mobilisation via
handheld devices).
As content and processes becomes un-
bundled and new audiences of consum-
ers, co-creators and validators emerge, new
business models and opportunities open
up for content aggregators, professional
associations, educational institutes and
knowledge professionals.
Within enterprises, the original concept
of knowledge management has evolved to
broader notions of knowledge ecology,
knowledge experiences, knowledge habi-
tats and knowledge marketplaces. “Over
time, the strategic importance of fusing
e-learning and knowledge management
will become clear to policy makers and
practitioners alike,” the authors predict.
New information and communication
technologies have created much more than
digitised content — they are spawning new
business models and strategies for knowl-
edge interchange in ways never before pos-
sible, transforming value chains into “value
webs,” and creating learning objects which
can be unbundled from traditional envi-
ronments. Visualisation tools, knowledge
blogs (“klogs”), P2P collaboration tools,
and semantic searches are interesting de-
velopments on this front.
Today’s vertical channels for e-content
include book publishers, learning manage-
ment systems (e.g. WebCT, Blackboard,
Click2Learn, Outstart), universities, trade
associations and professional societies.
These will be affected by the activities of
standards and consortia like the IMS Glo-
bal Learning Consortium, Dublin Core,
ebXML and ODRL.
Pioneering examples of e-knowledge in
action include pervasive computing ap-
proaches in healthcare for elder patients.
Professional societies like the American
Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists
have a knowledge portal, which offers dig-
itised journal content, email news alerts,
and online communities of practice for
lifelong learning. University alliances such
as e-Universities Worldwide are develop-
ing a common technical platform for
e-learning, course certification and brand-
ing.
Industry-wide sharing is also emerging,
as with the German manufacturing indus-
try’s communities of practice partnership
with the Fraunhofer Institute. Notable
e-knowledge examples on the e-govern-
ment front include Michigan.gov’s citizen
portal and inter-departmental communi-
ties, UK’s e-Envoy knowledge communi-
ties and Australia’s National Office of the
Information Economy.
The University of Wisconsin offers
portal-centric graduate learning, custom-
ised forms of learning and assessment
(“e-pedagogy”), personal intelligent agents,
lifelong access to a body of knowledge,
greater involvement in professional socie-
ties, and fusion of internship experiences
with formal learning. The Monterrey Tech
System (ITESM) offers connected learn-
ing services to ten different countries in
Latin America. Blending learning centres
leverage the clicks-and-bricks model for
37
 “
bringing educational services to de-
veloping countries in Asia, with
local ICT-enabled centres acting as
local learning gateways.
Nippon Roche employees consider
themselves to be knowledge and learning
activists, have their compensation tied to
sharing of insights, and sell non-proprie-
tary knowledge to medical schools.
The Knowledge Content Exchange is
a meta-marketplace of e-knowledge for all
kinds of experts and learners. The IEEE
Computer Society offers e-knowledge
marketplaces, blended learning, perpetu-
al knowledge refreshment and certification
programs.
“Most persons in knowledge-rich en-
terprises will discover significant roles as
both providers and consumers of e-knowl-
edge,” say the authors.
Organisations active in standards and
meta-data for e-content, learner objects
and workflow specification include MER-
LOT, Open Knowledge Initiative, Learn-
ing Federation, Learning Objects
Network, Global Knowledge Economics
Council, HR-XML Consortium, IMS
Global Learning Consortium, Open
Knowledge Initiative, Workflow Manage-
ment Coalition and the Web services
movement. The authors predict that hor-
izontal e-knowledge marketplaces (e.g.
SMETE, XanEdu) will achieve high mar-
ket penetration by the end of the decade.
“Internet culture drives the e-knowl-
edge industry,” according to the authors;
this includes academic, entrepreneurial,
communitarian and big-business cultures.
“Communities of practice will become
reorganised as the predominant organisa-
tional form in the e-Knowledge Economy.
They will be the epicentre of autonomic
learning and the development of individ-
ual and organisational capabilities,” the
authors predict.
Enterprise KM will be driven by “ex-
perience gateways” which can bypass
knowledge silos and legacy IT systems.
Communities of practice will seamlessly
link to business processes. “The goal is to
reinvent the conversational space of the
enterprise,” the authors advise.
Enterprises will have to reinvent their
knowledge ecosystems, including infrastruc-
ture and cultures. The challenge will be to
migrate from improvement to incremental
38
The book is also peppered with lots of interesting and useful quotes. Con-
sider;
To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, remove
things every day — Lao Tzu
The most profound technologies are those that disappear. They weave them-
selves into the fabric of everyday life until they are indistinguishable from it —
Marc Weiser
It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the
ones most responsive to change — Charles Darwin
Knowledge is experience. All else is information — Albert Einstein
It may make more sense to talk of a company’s distributed capabilities instead of
core capabilities — Mohanbir Sawhney and Deval Parikh
Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Involve me and I will
understand — Confucius
Knowledge is not a thing that can be managed like physical assets, but a human
and organisational capacity produced by collaborative relationships that can be
nurtured and inspired — George Por
Education in the 21st century will be about who can DO what, not who KNOWS
what — Roger Schank
Vision is the art of seeing things invisible — Jonathan Swift
The future is like heaven. Everybody exalts it, but nobody wants to go there now
— James Baldwin
Any technology gradually creates a totally new human environment — Marshall
McLuhan
Changes in academic culture and university programs will be driven by the de-
mand side (students, alums, employers, marketplace realities) and not from in-
stitutional supply-siders (professors, administrators) — Martin Irvine
Companies spent the 20th century creating and managing efficiencies.
”
They must spend the 21st century creating and managing experiences
— C.K. Prahalad and V. Ramaswamy
innovation to radical innovation. distinct from work) learning, and a shift
Challenges will arise in overcoming the from “tinkering” towards active transfor-
digital divide (e.g. between digital natives mation. The use of storytelling, bench-
and digital immigrants), moving beyond marking of e-knowledge practices,
digitising and Webifying, and creating new nurturing of knowledge flows, and infor-
vocabularies and standards (technical, le- mation/collaboration models driven by
gal, financial). portals will become important in the en-
“Competency and capacity develop- terprise context. 
ment is a top enterprise priority. Major
human resource challenges arise in creat-
ing enterprises that are e-knowledge
savvy,” the authors observe.
Towards the end, the authors’ recom-
mend a mix of “revolutionary vision and
expeditionary action,” a blend of “struc- Madanmohan Rao
tured and autonomic learning,” a migra- IT consultant
tion towards “fused” (as opposed to madan@inomy.com
i4d | February 2004
  Rendezvous
28 - 30 J ANUARY 2004, N EW D ELHI
Map India 2004
The recently completed Map India 2004
was the largest and the 7th Annual Inter-
national Conference and Exhibition in
India, in the field of geographic informa-
tion technologies like GIS, GPS, Aerial
Photography and Remote Sensing. Re-
sponding to the needs of the industry, the
research community and every individu-
al’s right to geospatial information, Map
India 2004 provided a platform for the
convergence, sharing and use of technol-
ogies and experiences. The conference
proved that people from India and the re-
gion have come to realize the need of ge-
ospatial technologies in their daily life. The
three-day event, held on 28th – 30th Janu-
ary 2004 at Taj Palace Hotel, Delhi, was
jointly organized by the Centre for Spa-
tial Database Management and Solutions
(CSDMS), GIS Development and Survey
of India, Government of India.
Theme
In comprehension of the emerging truth
that democracy in contemporary times
need to acknowledge the concept of In-
formation Democracy, Map India 2004
had a vital and bold theme of ‘Geospatial
Democracy’.
Over 1,200 delegates attended the 3-
day conference and were witness to im-
portant deliberations and discourses on the
theme and many other seminars and tech-
February 2004 | www.i4donline.net
nical sessions, each de-
signed and conducted by
domain specialists and ex-
perts. While most of them
were from India, several
overseas delegates also par-
ticipated, representing 46
countries of the world.
Map India 2004 had a
large Canadian delegation
with government and in-
dustry representation. It re-
instated the emerging
Indo-Canadian strong ties
in the domain of geospatial sciences and
services. The conference witnessed the
august presence of His Excellency Ms Lu-
cie Edwards the High Commissioner of
Canada and Mr Gar Knutson, the hon-
ourable Canadian Minister of State for
New and Emerging Markets. As a token
support, the Canadian High Commission
hosted a warm reception for the delegates.
The inaugural session was presided over
by Dr. M. P. Narayanan, President of Cen-
tre for Spatial Database Management and
Solutions (CSDMS), Dr Prithvish Nag,
Surveyor General of India, Kiran Karnik,
President, National Association of Soft-
ware Companies (NASSCOM) and Ravi
Gupta, Director, CSDMS. The surprise
of the session was a small film that opened
the occasion. The film depicted the ‘Map-
ping the Neighbourhood’ project of the
Department of Science and Technology
(DST), Government of India, where chil-
dren are mapping and addressing local is-
sues and developing on their own database
for decision-making.
Dr. Narayanan’s welcome address
touched upon the significance of the con-
ference. He emphasized ‘geospatial democ-
racy’ and interpreted it to be not only
about the right to information but also
about the freedom of expression and dis-
semination. This was followed by a note-
worthy inaugural address by Kiran Karnik.
The NASSCOM president admitted that
geospatial sciences in NASSCOM’s realm
fall under ‘IT enabled services’ which may
not be the right connotation to the disci-
pline. He said that about 100 billion USD
export is attributed to this industry. He
pointed out that government has been slow
in many respects in the geospatial domain.
Dr Nag followed with a keynote address
after the lamp lighting ceremony. He dis-
cussed the initiatives of the Survey of In-
dia and the government in easing access
to data for general public. The occasion
ended with a vote of thanks by Ravi Gupta.
Plenary sessions
Geospatial Democracy
Kiran Karnik chaired this plenary that had
three important talks by Amitabha Pande,
Joint Secretary, DST, Ms Preetha Pulusa-
ni, President, Intergraph Mapping and Ge-
ospatial Solutions and Xavier Lopez,
Director, Spatial Technologies, Oracle Inc.
The speech by Mr. Pande went into the
depths of the words ‘democracy’ and ‘peo-
ple’. It took up ‘state’ as an apparatus of
dominance that subverts or dominates
many aspects of democracy. He delved into
the history of the development of an over-
developed state in India. He went into
various domains of putting democracy and
the state against each other and pointing
towards a situation where ‘market’ might
be an emerging solution – ‘market’ that
represents the people, the users and the
commercial interests. The focus of his
speech was his interpretation of the con-
ference theme - “To strengthen the people
by giving shape and life to facts about phys-
ical space on this earth”. He ended with
pointers that depict the status of National
Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) in In-
dia and the Map Policy on the anvil.
Preetha Pulusani talked with a wider
realm taking up cases from across the world.
Cases of spatial data infrastructures (SDIs)
being developed at various stages and levels.
She mentioned cases of South Africa, UK,
Philippines, India, Spain and New Zealand.
Xavier Lopez spoke on an alternative
note. He raised the question – what is ge-
ospatial democracy not about? He elabo-
rated that it is not about releasing secret
data and not about holding spatial data
assets hostage to cost recovery policies.
Rather it is about the use of spatial data to
39
advance a nation’s academic, scientific, en-
vironmental and economic policies. He
took up to emerging market trends that
need to be looked upon before understand-
ing geospatial democracy.
He referred to US policies on informa-
tion and also explained the case of Ord-
nance Survey, UK. Mr. Karnik summed
up the session interestingly. He put across
the ideas of Mr. Pande against Mr. Lopez,
where the former hinted at enabling the
market to realise geospatial democracy
while the later talked of the government’s
crucial role needed.
Changing Roles of National
Mapping Organisations
This plenary had an important backdrop
that addressed organizations in their core
to relate to geospatial democracy. Four
important presentations were made by
Vanessa Lawrence, Director General and
Chief Executive, Ordnance Survey, UK;
Dr. Prithvish Nag, KK Singh, Chairman
and Managing Director, Rolta India Ltd.;
and Bob O’Neil, Acting Director Gener-
al, Canada Center for Remote Sensing,
Natural Resources, Canada. The session
was chaired by Madhukar Gupta, Addi-
tional Secretary, Ministry of Mines, Gov-
ernment of India.
The key pointers that emerged were
that geographic information producing
organizations in this region of the world
have concentrated on data generation,
storage and maintenance, often neglect-
ing distribution aspects. Security concerns
definitely work over data dissemination is-
sues, but instances where organizations
curtail data dissemination to avoid dilu-
tion of value of these datasets are not al-
ien. There is a need to re-think the roles,
mandates and mechanisms of functioning
of every National Mapping Organisation.
The presentation by the Surveyor Gen-
eral was well received and elaborated on
various aspects of the premier mapping or-
ganization’s present quest for change on
every front.
People First
This plenary was chaired by Amitabha
Pande. It had two important presenta-
tions by Dr RR Navalgund, Director of
the National Remote Sensing Agency,
India and Dr. David J. Maguire, Direc-
40
tor of Products, ESRI. Dr. Navalgund
spoke on the evolution, growth and sta-
tus of Indian Remote Sensing initiatives
and programme that has altered over
time to be now more people-centric from
being technology-centric. Dr Maguire
touched the basics and pointed out on
aspects that people cannot be put first
without initiatives and dedicated efforts.
He spoke on coordination, Spatial Data
Infrastructures and aspects to providing
people with the right tools that the sci-
ence has to offer.
Keynote Session: Technology
Trends
The session was chaired by P Venkatram,
Advisor, Jlets Technologies. The session
was well attended with stimulating dis-
courses. The three speakers spoke of
emerging technologies. Brad Skelton, Vice
President, Leica Geosystems discussed
photogrammetry, aerial photography,
LIDAR and Remote Sensing. He went
into the basics of each first, putting one
against the other and also briefly touch-
ing upon their evolution. He summed up
with the statements that imageries and any
survey generates data. The amount of data
generated has increased over the years. The
need today is of centralised data warehous-
es and systems that can handle massive
amount of data. John Allen, Director, BAE
Systems talked on technologies involved
with photogrammetry and Remote Sens-
ing. He emphasized the difference between
satellite imagery and these subjects as tech-
nologies. The last presentation by Mr.
Dhirendra Khurana from HP India em-
phasized on aspects of precision, exactness,
durability and cost effective ways of pro-
duction – all subject domains of HP.
Sessions and meets
Eighteen technical sessions took place in six
halls during the event. The sessions provid-
ed speakers with the opportunity to present
papers on varied fields of technical and so-
cial applications. The event also covered
two seminars on Infrastructure Development
and Educational and Curriculum Develop-
ment. There were two user meets – one of
which was amongst the users of the Nation-
al Resource Development and Management
System, Government of India and another
amongst the alumni of ITC Netherlands.
Exhibition
The 750 sq m exhibition, was a huge suc-
cess with 36 national and international or-
ganizations representing the government,
the academia and the commercial private
sectors displaying their services and prod-
ucts. The exhibition was coupled with
technology shows, sponsored dinners,
events and networking time periods. The
exhibition attracted over 3000 visitors.
Valedictory
Dr M P Narayanan, chaired the valedic-
tory session. Other panellists included
Prof. Y K Alagh, Former Union Minister
and Member of Parliament, Government
of India, Dr. Milan Konecny, President,
International Cartographic Association
(ICA) and Mr Ravi Gupta.
The sessions raised crucial pointers for
every stakeholder present. Professor Alagh
spoke on the economic significance of spa-
tial and non-spatial data for the nation in
terms of its generation, maintenance and
use. He touched on the positive aspects
and existing strengths in the country in
this domain. He also spoke of the realities
that come forth as hindrances in the open-
ing up and widening of information ac-
cess. Dr Milan added an international
perspective, drawing examples from his
country Czech Republic and ICA. He em-
phasized expertise sharing, cooperation in
data generation and defining the path to
realization of geospatial democracy
The session ended with a brief and in-
formative presentation by Ravi Gupta,
about the basic statistics of Map India
2004 in comparison to the earlier years.
He also presided over the award giving
ceremony before inviting Dr Narayanan
to close the conference. Awards were pre-
sented to best student and technical pa-
pers presented during the sessions, in
addition to a best poster and exhibits.
Map India 2004 was able to provide a
platform to share the needs, the supply,
the latest developments and the concerns
in the field of Geo-informatics It initiated
discussions on ‘geographic information’ as
a policy issue as well as a subject and in
the process left significant pointers for it
to evolve as mandated guidelines.
Ayon Tarafdar, Assistant Editor
GIS Development, ayon@gisdevelopment.net
i4d | February 2004
What’s on
09-12 August, 2004
Joint Conference: 4th International
Conference of Asian Federation of
Information Technology in Agriculture
Bangkok
www.afitaandwcca2004.net/
Canada 26-27 February, 2004
09-12 August, 2004
15-17 March, 2004 Workshop on ICT for Poverty Alleviation
World Congress on Computers in
International Conference on in India
Agriculture and Natural Resources
Educational Multimedia Ahmedabad
Bangkok
Québec City sbhatnagar@worldbank.org
www.afitaandwcca2004.net/
www.icem2004.org
11-12 March 2004
United Kingdom
06-10 June,2004 3rd Regional Meeting of One World South
28-29 January,2004
Sharing Indigenous Wisdom Asia Partners
Learning Technologies 2004
Wisconsin New Delhi
Olympia 2,London
www.sharingindigenouswisdom.org/default.asp www.southasia.oneworld.net
www.learningtechnologies.co.uk/conference/
Egypt 16-17 March 2004 conference.cfm
03-08 May, 2004 Reaching the Unreached with ICTs
05-07-April, 2004
ITU Telecom Africa 2004 A UNESCO and Datamation Foundation
Networked Learning 2004
Cairo National Workshop
England
www.itu.int/AFRICA2004/index.html New Delhi
www.shef.ac.uk/nlc2004/
www.datamationfoundation.org
Germany
United States
18-24 March,2004 24-26 March, 2004
29 February - 03 March, 2004
CeBIT EuroIndia2004
Innovations 2004
Hannover New Delhi
California
www.cebit.de/ www.euroindia2004.org/
www.league.org/i2004/
Ghana Kenya
23-26 May, 2004
04-06 May,2004 16-18 March, 2004
2004 Information Resources
AITEC Ghana Kenya National ICT Convention
Management Association International
Accra Nairobi
Conference
www.aitecafrica.com/events/events.html www.aitecafrica.com/events/events.html
New Orleans, Louisiana
Greece New Zealand www.irma-international.org
19-21 May, 2004 04-08 July, 2004
06-10 June,2004
World Congress on IT 2004 3rd PAN Commonwealth Forum on
Sharing Indigenous Wisdom: An
Athens Open Learning
International Dialogue on Sustainable
www.worldcongress2004.org Dunedin
Development
www.col.org/pcf3/
India Wisconsin
19-23 February, 2004 Thailand www.sharingindigenouswisdom.org/default.asp
Fourth Annual Baramati Initaitive on 01 March, 2004
21-25 July,2004
ICT and Development Sixth Regional Interagency Working
International Conference on Education
Baramati, Maharastra Group on ICT
and Information Systems: Technologies
www.digitalpartners.org Bangkok
and Applications EISTA 2004
www.unescap.org/upcoming.asp
24-26 February, 2004 Orlando, Florida, USA
microfinance India 2008 05 June - 05 August, 2004 www.confinf.org/eista04
New Delhi Education ICT 2004
www.careindia.org:8080/index.jsp# Bangkok
www.reedtradex.com/edict
24-27 February, 2004
International Conference on Digital 01-03 July, 2004
Get your event listed here.
Libraries – Knowledge creation, The 13th Annual AMIC conference, on
preservation, access and management Media, ICTs and Development www.i4donline.net/events
New Delhi Bangkok
www.teriin.org/events/icdl/ www.amic.org.sg/conf2004.html

February 2004 | www.i4donline.net 41

 ET CETRA

Games people play

Communicating basic ICT skills to children requires considerable innovation and
effort on the part of the teacher. Here are a few examples of exercises that have
been followed in several schools of UK. Contributed by several dedicated
teachers and educators, these exercises are both fun as well as easily replicable
as non-normative and emulative teaching methods.

Name of Activity Age Description

Range

Making Web Pages 5 - 11 Clear guidance and advice for those wishing
to start making web sites. Particularly useful
for anyone thinking about setting up a new
school web site.

Genre Net 5 - 11 Explains how to teach children about

different genre, while using computers (and
particularly the Internet). Contains loads of
ideas and guidance relating to Word
Processing, Using Email, Searching the
Internet and Making Web Pages.

Morris the Martian 5 - 11 Fun activity which lets children use a

roamer or other similar control equipment

KS1 Colouring Activity 5-7 A simple ICT activity to use with younger
children at the start of the school year.
Contributed by Pennie Coren.

Calligrams 7 - 11 A very useful worksheet giving instructions

and inspiration in relation to making
calligrams using WordArt.

Tessellations 7 - 11 Use MS Publisher to develop children’s

knowledge of tessellation of different
shapes. Also includes an excellent
interactive worksheet in Publisher format.

Make Your Own Postcards 7 - 11 Let children use computers to make lots of
great personalised postcards (real and
electronic).

Source: http://www.teachingideas.co.uk/ict/contents.htm

42 i4d | February 2004

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EuroIndia2004 Co-operation Forum on
Information & Communication Technologies
New Delhi, 24th – 26th March, 2004

EuroIndia2004, the first Euro-Indian ICT cooperation Forum organised by the

Euopean Commission with the support of the Confederation of Indian Industry
(CII) and the participation of the Government of India (Ministry of Information
Technology & Communications and the Department of Science & Technology),
Nasscom and MAIT, this unique three-day international event will bring you
closer to the European ICT player as never before.

Indian RTD and Academia will encounter European Enterprises, Research &
Academia to discuss co-operation and develop joint RTD projects for Research
& Technology Development that are now eligible for institutional funding by the
European Union.

India is presently a key partner for Europe and this event can contribute effec-
tively to your organisation’s business strategy with a diverse programme of
numerous opportunities for participants featuring:

• Exhibition presenting Products and Technologies from Europe,

showcasing organisations, accessible to all delegates and visitors
• Conference and Technical Workshops to create strategic alliances
• One to one meetings with prospective partners
• Presentation opportunities for individual organisations

Participation is FREE of charge. But places are limited so register today at

www.euroindia2004.org, and explore all the benefits that this Forum brings to your
doorstep.

We look forward to seeing you in Delhi, 24th – 26th March 2004.

www.euroindia2004.org