Thirty-year-old Shanti has a reason to smile. This Class X dropout in a small village in Uttar Pradesh, who reluctantly gave up studies to shoulder household responsibilities, will now get a shot at fulfilling her dreams under a new digital literacy scheme being launched by the Department of Information Technology.
The IT Department plans to utilise the existing Common Service Centres or CSCs to impart IT training to 25,000 rural women. The pilot scheme is likely to be flagged off later this month, official sources said.
Put simply, CSCs or computer kiosks deliver a host of Web-enabled e-governance services in rural areas. The services range from distributing application forms, certificates and utility payments (electricity, telephone and water bills) to rural BPOs, information on agricultural prices and weather updates among others.
At last count, over 94,000 CSCs had been rolled out across 31 States and Union Territories and connectivity provided to 67,883 of them. The scheme will essentially combine the reach of the CSCs with the larger social objective of empowering rural women. Initially the training programme will be available at select CSCs, sources said.
The ‘Course on Computer Concepts' is designed and administered by DOEACC — a society under the IT Department tasked with training and certifying IT manpower. The 80-hour introductory IT course will cover basic computer concepts, word processing, spreadsheets, and use of the Internet and browsers among other aspects.
The programme will help the rural women use their computer skills to gain employment or set up a business and become self-sufficient. The IT Department hopes that the certification will enable the women to seek not only Government jobs but also other employment opportunities in their respective areas, where a slew of e-governance programmes are set to be launched.
The scheme also proposes to extend financial support to women who undergo the training. An incentive of Rs 360 is provided to those who clear the course. Additionally, the examination fee has been waived for those who complete the course. The Village Level Entrepreneurs — who will provide the training under the scheme — will also receive Rs 360 if the trainee clears the course for certification. The VLE in consultation with the respective Gram Panchayat will select the women for the training course.
The scheme will be managed through a Special Purpose Vehicle — ‘CSC e-Governance Services'. It will be rolled out in Assam, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. About 2,500 women will be trained in each of the States. The course will be available in English as well as local languages.
However, while the scheme appears sound conceptually, experts strike a note of caution on the ground realities that could derail it. “Just the provision of technology does not mean that women in rural areas will access technology. There is a whole mindset that needs to be changed, technology has to be demystified,” says Dr Anita Dighe, who has worked for years in the field of literacy, education, ICT, and open and distance learning.
Some of the other factors that will determine the efficacy of the scheme include the location of the CSCs and the class timings. Local language and locally relevant content are a must to create a buzz around such schemes. “There are all kinds of constraints and special effort is required to reach out to rural women. There is a whole lot of handholding required. Unless that happens these women will be left out,” she cautions.