Advertisment

Gates to hold global summit to discuss Net's future

author-image
CIOL Bureau
Updated On
New Update

BANGALORE: Bill Gate's has invited about 200 politicians, bureaucrats and

friends from all over the world for two days of brainstorming, April 4-5, on the

"future of the Net" and "the use of the Net in education".

India has got 10 invitations to Microsoft’s headquarters at US.

Among the lucky ten are the chief ministers of Maharashtra, Gujarat and

Andhra Pradesh and the Union secretary for IT Sharad Pawar. For Chandrababu

Naidu this is no surprise because Microsoft was among the few companies to

repose its faith in Cyberabad. It saw value in Hyderabad by opening a

development centre, which contributed heavily to the development of Windows

2000. Not to mention the fact that Hyderabad hit the ground running when it came

to setting up an Indian Institute of Information Technology.

Mr Pawar recently at Baramati for the inauguration of an IT institute and the

first rural internet service provider said, "We are embarking on a journey

that will take us far into new and exciting frontiers, which will open up for us

glorious opportunities, about whose existence we knew precious little till

recently." A silent revolution in infotech is sweeping across the agro-rich

areas of Maharashtra. In Warana in Kolhapur, some 90 villages have been wired,

not only with each other, but to the entire world, said Mr Pawar. "IT is no

longer a domain of cities. It is driving development in rural areas as

well," he said.



In this context, he believes the meeting convened by Mr Gates assumes
significance. But Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh may not be able

to make it as the state assembly is in session.

tech-news