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Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Internet.org wants to connect India's offline millions

Most parents would love to get their teenagers away from computers.

But not in one poor suburb on the outskirts of Delhi, where youngsters are sent to learn.
Sharing a few laptops between them, they're being taught some basic online skills - how to search for information, how to send money to their families in the villages and how to book train tickets.
None of the children have access to computers in school. Nor do they own one.
Children of migrant workers from Bihar, they study in a government school in the neighbourhood.
Like 16-year-old Priyanka Singh, who says getting online has changed her life.
"Earlier we had to pay agents a lot of money to book our train tickets or trust strangers to carry our money back home. Now I can help my father do everything online," she says.

Mark Zuckerberg at the two-day Internet.org summit held in New Delhi
Mark Zuckerberg at the two-day Internet.org summit held in New Delhi image by GETTY Image.

Perhaps the most high profile partner is Facebook, whose founder Mark Zuckerberg says connectivity is a fundamental right. He came to India this month for the launch.
The number of Indians using the internet jumped by about 25% last year from 2012, but the numbers are still small compared to the population.
And the biggest barrier to changing that is cost.
The next wave of potential internet users is lower skilled workers, like shop assistants, or street vendors.
But earning less than $200 a month, and often struggling to make ends meet, many question whether they can really afford internet access.
"The internet is something that we are uniquely suited to help spread," says Mr Zuckerberg.
"We are an information technology company and an internet company. We understand these dynamics well."

Source: bbc.com written by


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