Software giant Microsoft Corporation India on Wednesday announced its new rural initiative to set up 50,000 IT kiosks in the next three years for providing a wide range of information and services related to health, education, communication and agriculture in villages.
"We will set up 50,000 kiosks across India over the next three years. This is a great start but our larger aim is to reach more than 50 per cent of the rural population within three years," Ranjivjit Singh, Microsoft India group director (consumer business), told reporters.
The initiative, named 'Saksham' (self-reliant), would provide local entrepreneurs a chance to set up and manage kiosks on a self-sustaining basis for providing content and services to the rural populace.
Microsoft has tied up with three non-government agencies -- Drishti, Jaikisan and n-Logue - to roll out these kiosks and is also in talks with lending institutions such as State Bank of India to provide funding to local entrepreneurs, Microsoft India Managing Director Neelam Dhawan said.
The software major will provide technical support and training to the local youth, who would manage these kiosks. The operators can charge a fee for various services and generate revenues to pay back their loans to the bank, Singh said.
Microsoft is also developing a rural portal powered with content and applications for the rural areas by working with regional and local independent software vendor.
The company conducted research at 350 kiosks covering 4,000 users across six states before finalising the plan, he said. In line with research findings, the kiosks have been designed to provide both online and offline services to cater to their socio-economic needs, he added.
