The CommonWealth Express Train |
IT strength on wheels
The ‘Commonwealth Express’ wheels in today by Department of Information Technology
Raipur, 10 August, 2010: In a bid to create greater awareness among the people at
large, the Department of Information Technology has taken a massive initiative. It has
put up an exposition on the wheels of a specially designed train called ‘Commonwealth
Express’. The exposition showcases the significance of ICT as a major force of change
impacting virtually every sphere of life – from industry, health and education to ecology
and disaster forecast. |
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The train has a 101-day long journey schedule and is planned to
travel through 21 states and 3 union territories, stopping at 49 major stations. It started
from Delhi on June 24, 2010. This was the 48th day of the journey of the Commonwealth
Express and Raipur is the 24th stop-over on the itinerary. As the train arrived at the
platform this morning, a huge crowd had gathered at the platform, enthusiastic about
the much-awaited exhibition. The train will stay at the station for 02 days when the
exhibition will remain open for the visitors.
The exhibition is spread across six coaches, showcasing various dimensions and
perspectives of ICT. The exhibition has been planned in a way that the six coaches
tell about different facets of ICT, each dealing with one particular facet. A curtain-
raiser, the first coach presents an overview about ICT, how it has impacted life, how
it is changing the ways of life and working as ‘change agent’ bringing social and
economic transformation. One of the interesting aspects of the first coach is the story of
communications over the years, from smoke signals in the primitive times to the SMS
and e-mails. The second coach showcases a cohesion of efforts taken by DIT and several
other organisations in the sphere of ICT, their contributions towards bringing ICT to the
life of the common man and, at the same time building India into an ‘IT Superpower’.
One of the focal points of the coach is the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), a major
initiative towards the concept of ‘good governance’. The third coach deals with the
impact of ICT in various sectors – social, health, education, agriculture and ecology.
It presents the role of ICT as a major unifying factor, bringing the world together. The
fourth coach presents ICT from the perspective of industries, its key role in the growth
of industries and the country’s economic rise. The theme of the fifth coach revolves
around Common Service Centres (CSCs), an initiative to provide a platform to the people
to access various information and services as well as an interface between government
agencies and the citizens. The sixth coach has been designed as an auditorium. Internet,
video conferencing and mobile communications are some of the highlights of the
exhibition.
This unique and first of its kind exhibition provides apt business opportunities to people,
as many stand to benefit from various public-private partnership initiatives of the
Department of Information Technology.
Speaking about the concept of the Commonwealth Express, R. Chandrashekhar,
Secretary, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, said “While
a section of the population is much aware of the significance of information and
communication technology, the larger section still does not have much clarity about it.
The more important fact is that they don’t know how ICT as a tool can change their lives.
The Commonwealth Express is about bridging that knowledge gap.” |
