ICTS and development : a study of telecentres in rural India / Maitrayee Mukerji.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mukerji, Maitrayee, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rural telecommunication--India.

Rural telecommunication.

Telecommunication policy--India.

Telecommunication policy.

Information technology--Social aspects.

India.

Rural development--India.

Rural development.

Information technology--Social aspects--India.

Information technology.

Physical Description:

xiii, 264 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York, NY : Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

Summary:

ICT-D refers to the trend in development thinking and practice that considers deployment of new technologies such as computers, mobile phones and the Internet, as important for spurring economic growth, enabling good governance and facilitating human development. In this context, telecentres have emerged as an immensely popular strategy for providing shared and mediated access to ICTs. The rapid proliferation of telecentres in rural India during the last decade was driven by multiple agencies, each with their own purpose, priorities and pre-designed set of services. This volume juxtaposes the global discourse on ICT-D and telecentres with in-depth empirical case studies on the pattern of access and use of telecenters in rural India to draw implications for policy and practice. It suggests that access and use of telecentres and their services are mediated by the multiple contexts in which they are embedded. While they provide opportunities for people to interact with new technologies, their impact has been mainly in terms of convenience provided by some of the services vis-à-vis existing alternate channels. Particular telecentre models have brought about some change, but this is only when there was a match between the services provided and the local demand for particular information and services. Access and use is also shaped by factors such as user fees, need for reading and computing skills, and linkages with existing institutional contexts. The efficacy of telecentres in generating new jobs in rural areas, increasing efficiency and reach of e-Governance and other basic services, enhancing livelihoods and the well-being of the people, and overcoming the rural-urban divide has been limited. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 Introduction 1

2 Perspectives on ICTs and Development 12

3 Telecentres in Rural India 28

4 Conceptual Framework and Methodology 51

5 Akshaya, Kerala 73

6 e-Choupal, Maharashtra 90

7 Drishtee, Uttar Pradesh 114

8 Pattern of Access and Use 137

9 Developmental Implications 163.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-261) and index.

ISBN:

113700553X

9781137005533

OCLC:

809978152