People And IT

New Delhi, 25 April 2008

Low-Cost Computers

THE GREAT DIGITAL DIVIDE       

By Radhakrishna Rao

No doubt, India is acknowledged as the Mecca of IT and software services’ industry. But the digital divide is as wide as in any developing country. For instance, in Bangalore considered the Silicon Valley of India, the gap between those having access to computers and those forced to do without it is quite striking.

A recent study by a global technology company points out that there is just one PC for every 50 Indians. “The country has one PC (Personal Computer) for every 50 Indians today. This represents a watershed era in the history of the Indian market. However, we still have to go  miles as a country  to evolve an eco system that would help take this trend  to the next level so that the benefits of computerization reach the masses”, says its India Manager, Kapil Dev Singh. And as pointed out by Philp Clay of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) one should not expect instant miracles in bridging the digital divide and creating digital villages.

Clearly, computer connectivity holds the key to usher in a veritable “knowledge revolution” which has the potential to spur the socio-economic progress in its varying manifestations. Indeed, the former Indian President has been stressing on the need to give quickening impetus to the process of “knowledge revolution in India”. As one commentator has put it, “Computers were never  the source of any one’s poverty and as for escaping poverty what people do for themselves matters more than what technology could for them”.

However, many bold and imaginative attempts made in India to boost the penetration of PC through the introduction of “affordable and low cost” computing devices have failed to meet their desired objectives. For instance, even after five years of its much acclaimed introduction,  Simputer, India’s own low-cost computing device, designed and developed by a team of computer scientists from Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in association with the Indian IT industry has failed to make an impact on India’s computer connectivity scenario.

Touted as multi-purpose, easy to handle computing system, well-suited to bridge the digital divide in the country, Simputer, is yet to become popular.  It was originally envisaged that shared Simputers would be made available to village schools, community halls or other areas where common facilities are usually free. However, the failure of the promoters of Simptuer to tune to the specific needs of the targeted user community is believed to be the major reason for its slow penetration.

It may be recalled that not long back the Union Government had rejected the proposal of MIT Media Lab to popularize US$100 laptop in the Indian market. For the Centre had found the product was not suited to the Indian needs. The argument was that US$100 investment on a laptop could be spent more productively in other ways. “We cannot visualize a situation for decades when we can go beyond the pilot stage. We need classrooms and tables more urgently than any fancy toys” says a government spokesman.

On a more practical plan, serious doubts have been raised as to whether there is enough evidence to prove that children would spontaneously be interested in seeking out educational materials and interacting with the rest of the world with low-cost computers.  Further, there is also concern whether developing nations can set up a robust network in the rural areas.

For precisely these reasons the idea of Nichola Negroponte, one of the promoters of MIT Media Lab and a staunch champion of low-cost computing systems, to make available low-cost laptops to children of the third world has hit an unexpected roadblock. There is lukewarm response to the US $100 laptop proposal. For here again there is a concern whether children and teachers who have never seen a computer would be in a position to use them in a productive educational way.

It was in 2005 that Negroponte unveiled his by now famous “One Laptop per Child (OLPC) programme aimed at bridging the digital device in the third world countries. The idea was to distribute around 150-million low-cost laptops to the world’s poorest school children through the support of governments, the IT industry and voluntary organizations. Significantly, Negroponte had sought a pledge from developing countries to buy such laptops in bulk.

The global chip giant Intel which had earlier partnered with Negroponte’s project has now come out with its own version of the low-cost computer model. In fact, Libya showed preference for the Intel system. In India, Intel has tied up with HCL Info systems to popularize its low priced Intel powered classmate PC. Not to be left behind, Indian IT companies like Wipro and Zenith have too initiated their plans to market low cost computing systems. Interestingly, the Classmate PC forms a part of Intel’s pilot programme to improve education in developing countries.

On another front, the software giant Microsoft is also working towards making computer systems affordable by reducing the cost of software. Microsoft has already stated that it will offer developing countries a US $3 software package that includes window, a student version of Microsoft Office and educational programmes.

As pointed out by a research analyst affordability is not the basic constraint before the PC market in India. For in the ultimate analysis to what extent a low cost computing system would be put to use is the crux of the problem.--INFA

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)