GOVERNMENT

The Secretary, Department of Information Technology in India, Shri K.K. Jaswal has called for a concerted effort on the part of the industry, academia and the Government institutions for realising full potential of the opportunities which are emerging on the horizon. Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural function of the Electronics and Information Technology Exposition – Elitex 2004 today, he said that electronics and information technology scenario is extremely dynamic and opportunities have to be discerned and seized when the outlines are still fuzzy. During the Expo, Seminars will provide special focus on the emerging technology areas and related issues like high performance and grid computing; human computer interface; next generation wireless technologies; India – a global R&D hub for ICTE; IT security, trends in nano-technologies; e–governance etc. Shri Jaswal said that in today’s knowledge society, continuous innovation is the key to retaining one’s competitive advantage. The potential of emerging technologies also needs to be harnessed to address the problems of socio-economic development and keep pace with the expanding horizons of human knowledge. Referring to Nano technology, he said that it has potential to completely transform existing processes and systems. The Secretary said that we need to focus efforts on design and delivery of broad band services in the areas of education, health care, entertainment and disaster management. He said that there is an urgent need to develop user friendly and cost efficient tools based on Indian languages for providing content accessible to the vast majority of the population. Shri Jaswal said that a nurturing environment has to be created to foster entrepreneurship-based models drawing upon private and public institutions to universalise programmes such as e-Governance, e-Business, e-Commerce, e-Education and e-Health. He stated that the steps to bridge the Digital Divide needs to be undertaken with a view to remove the asymmetry between urban and rural areas in terms of access to modern information and communication technologies. Dr. R.A. Mashelkar, Director General, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, in his inaugural address spoke of India’s strengths in different fields which, he said, needs to be harnessed. He stated that the human resource power was a key factor which is going to play a crucial role. Expressing confidence that India will emerge as the global IT Hub, Shri Mashelkar said that cost-cum-competence factor needs to be looked into. The two-day Electronics and Information Technology Exposition (ELITEX-2004) has been organised by the Department of Information Technology (DIT). During the Expo, research and development efforts in the areas of electronics and information technology at various institutes will be on display. It will also help disseminate information on these technologies and products among various users and the industry. The theme of this year’s ELITEX-2004 has been chosen as “Technology Vision: India in 2010”. A range of new products developed by organisations under the DIT will be launched during ELITEX 2004. These are: Vehicle Underside Scanner, Cell Phone Jammer both for GSM and CDMA, Custom Power Devices, Software Code Compliance, Software Test Coverage and Solder Paste for Hybrid Circuits and Surface Mount Technologies. Also on display will be several products, the know-how of which can be transferred to the industry or the users. Some of these include: Digital Mobile Radio, WLL Antenna, Vehicle Underside Scanner, Net Master, Sanskrit Authoring System, Broadband Microwave Photonics Link, Technology for e-commerce, Computerised Braille Transcription System, Fertiliser Testing Kit, Tele-medicine technology, Neonatal open care system for rural masses etc. The official delegations from thirteen participating countries would also be available for discussion on the tie-up possibilities on the technologies/services available from India. The member countries of Asia Electronics Info-Communications Union (AEIU) have also been specially invited to participate in the event. Besides creating awareness about DIT technologies, ELITEX-2004 would also promote R&D industry linkages essential for the absorption of indigenous technology by the industry and for stimulating innovations. At ELITEX 2004, the participants will get an opportunity to interact directly with the technology developers. Special arrangements have been made to facilitate discussions with the scientists involved in the development of these technologies.