Tata Trusts and Google Launch Internet Literacy Campaign for Women in Rural India

By 121 NEWS

Chandigarh 03^rd July:- Tata Trusts and Google India today announced the launch of a special program called "Internet Saathi" to empower women and their communities in rural India by enabling them to use the Internet and benefit from it in their daily lives. The joint initiativeis aimed at bridging the technology gender divide, which currently puts women in rural India at further risk of getting left behind as the world around them benefits from Internet. The initiative titled 'Internet Saathi' is another step towards the Digital India vision of the country. The launch was also graced by Ratan Tata, Chairman, Tata Trusts. The initiative will provide basic training on the usage and benefits of Internet for women through specially designed Internet cycle carts that will visit villages to provide easy access to women.

Built on the back of a cycle, the Cart is modeled on India's traditional distribution system that is used to carry everything from ice-cream to industrial supplies. The operator or the "Internet Saathi" keen to train the women, would be akin to the village postman who was the single point contact for the village with the outside world both in terms of information as well as communication. Tata Trusts, with its vast field based eco system, will manage the on-ground rollout with its partners whereas Google will invest in providing the Internet-enabled Carts and the training content.

 Speaking about the initiative with Tata Trusts, Rajan Anandan, VP and Managing Director of Google South East Asia and India said that while women are making rapid progress on adoption of Internet in urban areas, women in rural India are getting left behind. Today only 12% of Internet users in rural India are women. We need to come together to address this challenge and empower women in rural India through training and programs that can truly transform their lives. We are delighted to partner with the most respected and well-known Tata Trusts who have years of experience in managing programs of this scale. By combining our strengths, I am confident that we can achieve great results and overcome the challenges of providing easy access and digital education to women in rural India.

R Venkataramanan, Executive Trustee, Tata Trusts said that Tata Trusts strongly believes that innovative use of technology should be at the core of all its interventions that are undertaken for the benefit of the communities. Internet connectivity has become a fundamental need in any society and improves literacy and access to information that is instrumental for socio-economic development. We are glad that this joint initiative with Google will reach out to the rural communities, especially women in our country and we are confident that it will contribute towards their empowerment and also self-sustenance.