Tata Trusts and Prodea Systems announced that 75 million residents will now be able to benefit through their partnership which aims to bring more residents of the state of Rajasthan online and enables them to access important information and services in the areas of health, finances, agriculture, farming, education and entrepreneurship.
This initiative that will be supported by the Government of Rajasthan and the Non-Government Organizations representing their constituents, will bring beneficial government services, maternal and infant health information, nutrition and child care benefits and education, farming and animal husbandry training, news and information, along with many other internet based services, to the farthest and most rural communities within Rajasthan, providing access to information for those residents who would not normally be able to take advantage of the internet due to the lack of access to computers, smart devices or illiteracy.
This progressive partnership is called DRUV - the North Star, which combines the philanthropic and entrepreneurial vision of Tata Trusts to Prodea's technological expertise along with Digital India initiatives to target Rajasthan's technologically deprived communities. The partnership will address some of the prevalent challenges that rural communities in developing countries face, namely:
-- Highly distributed populations with very limited access to technology
-- Very high illiteracy rates which make traditional written communications impossible
-- Lack of awareness of entitlements of government benefits by a majority of people who are in need of it, due to high illiteracy rates and limited or no access to information
-- Low smart phone penetration with access typically with the male of the household, providing no benefit to women and children
To view the full press release, click here.
