NASSCOM organizes ConnectIT Day in Rajasthan

JAIPUR, INDIA: NASSCOM Foundation, the social development arm of NASSCOM, today announced the commencement of ConnectIT workshops in Rajasthan at the ConnectIT Day held in the state capital on the 20th of April.

ConnectIT is a series of workshops for Government officers and NGO managers aimed at building capacities in using technology for development. The program is conducted in partnership with Microsoft.

The first such session was held in Jaipur and will be followed up by similar workshops in Udaipur, Kota and Ajmer, said a press release.

Rumi Mallick, national programme manager, NASSCOM Foundation said, "With ConnectIT, NASSCOM Foundation will further enhance the capabilities of NGOs and enable them to build a better infrastructure in their efforts to change lives. For government officers, these training workshops aim to be a step ahead in building their skills to effectively implement e-Governance in their departments.”

He added that the ConnectIT sessions have been a success in Maharashtra, they hope to repeat the same in Rajasthan too.

The inaugural session of ConnectIT Day was graced by M L Mehta- ex chief secretary of Rajasthan and trustee of Indian Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR), M D Shivankar- managing director, Rajasthan Knowledge Corporation Ltd and Deepak Maheshwari- director Corporate Affairs, Microsoft India.

This session brought together a panel who led forward thinking discussion of IT/ICT's (Information and communication technologies) potential as a key force to accelerate social and economic development. Panelists' shared their innovative examples of IT/ICT advancing social development.

Mehta spoke about the current developments in IT and its integration with government services, health services etc. and how it was revolutionizing the service delivery to citizens. He pointed out how e -governance helps citizens and villagers to avail of government services easily and save resources in money and time.

He gave various examples in telemedicine, timely agricultural informational services available to farmers, how mobiles help reach information to the villages among others. He emphasized the need for trained manpower to deliver these services and gave various examples of capacity building efforts of the government and the need to further such efforts.

The ConnectIT workshops which would follow across Rajasthan would enable the participant NGOs to draw on best practices and uses of technology for their own specific environment and areas of effort, and enable them to deliver top-of-the-line service in the areas in which they operate.