Rural India must be part of growth story, says Pilot
We’ve posted about MP and MoS for External Affairs, Shashi Tharoor’s tweeting and his tech-savvy campaign, and now here’s another tech-driven Minister: this time it’s part of his official calling. As MoS for Communications and IT, MP Sachin Pilot has his priorities clear – bridging the digital divide.
“I don’t want this ministry to be perceived as elitist. I want to blur the contours of that carve-up so that rural India can also be part of the big growth story,” Pilot told IANS in an interview.
For starters, Pilot, 32, who has an MBA degree from the Wharton Business School, wants to open up 100,000 community service centres that will be an interface with villagers and help them access land deeds, caste certificates and other services through e-connectivity.
“These centres will all be in place by next year in villages throughout the country and will be run on a private-public partnership basis. These centres are already functional in Haryana and Jharkhand,” he said.
Pilot has already prepared the groundwork where all panchayats in India, including those in the remotest outback, will have broadband connectivity in the next three years.
More here.
