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23 July 2010 / www.egovonline.net / egov

he Andhra Pradesh Department of IT formally announced the hosting of sixth eINDIA 2010—India’s largest

ICT event in Hyderabad from August 4-6, 2010. On Wednesday, June 23, 2010 K Ratna Prabha, Principal Secretary, Department of IT and Communications, Andhra Pradesh, did the curtain raiser of eINDIA 2010, accompanied by MP Narayanan, President, Centre for Science Development and Media Studies. P Venugopal, Director, Hyderabad State Technology Parks of India and L Suresh, President, ITSAP were also present at the launch ceremony.

The event is hosted by the Government of Andhra Pradesh and is being organised by Center for Science, Development and Media Studies (CSDMS) and Elets Technomedia, publishers of e-Gov. It is being co-organised by various ministries and departments of Government of India, namely Department

T of IT, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Ministry of Labour & Employment, Unique Identification Authority of India, Directorate General of Employment & Training, IGNOU and the National eGovernance Plan.

While Sri Lanka is the official Country Partner of eINDIA 2010, the event will also have participation of high-powered senior level delegates from Egypt, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Sudan and the European Union.

The three-day conference comprises several tracks and sessions on e-Gov, unique ID, municipal IT, digital learning, e-agriculture and e-health. These, along with Hospital CIO Con-clave and Telecentre Forum will be attended by stakeholders from across the development and government sector, including elected members of state assemblies and the Parliament, senior level bureaucrats, policy makers, academia, NGOs and industry associations.

Speaking on the occasion, Ratna Prabha said, “We are happy to co-participate and proud to be a part of eINDIA 2010. Through

this three-day conference, we will not just know what all has been happening in Andhra Pradesh in e-Governance but it will also be a great learning from all over the country, given the huge participation from states and the industry.”

Ratna Prabha said of the states achievements in IT exports, “We have reached the fourth position. Next year, we expect to reach to be third,” she added. For the fiscal year ended March 31, total IT exports are expected to be Rs 36,000 crore, up 12.5 percent over Rs 32,000 crore in the previous year.

IT exports from the state accounts for 15 per-cent of the country’s total. Karnataka accounts for 30 percent. She said that Andhra Pradesh will work hard to cross this mark. “eINDIA 2010 will be a big boost to the IT sector and the state. I urge people in IT industry to participate with much enthusiasm,” she said.

P Venugopal said that e-INDIA is happening at a time when world economy is recovering from slowdown. In the global IT industry, India has played a positive role. “Deliberations on e-municipalities and e-services will go a long way in fulfilling the India 2020 vision,” he noted.

Representing the industry, L Suresh commented, “Almost 95 percent of the AP business is from developed countries. The time has come when Indian companies look at expanding in Africa, Asia and other part of the developing world.” He expressed his delight over the increasing IT product business, “We have seen an upward swing in the product business and IT is now no more confined to services.” He also expressed his optimism over the increase in the business of companies participating in e-INDIA 2010.

Viewing the growth made by Hyderabad in IT, MP Narayanan said, “It’s becoming an IT capital of India. We need more participation from all states in terms of IT and e-Gover-nance adoption. Andhra Pradesh has been quite proactive in adopting IT, starting off in 1999-2000.”

eInDIA 2010 reaches nizamlandHyderabad, beaming with a vibrant IT industry, will host India’s largest ICT event this yearBy Pratap Vikram Singh

“eINDIA 2010 wIll be A bIg booST To The IT SecTor AND The STATe” K ratna Prabha, Principal Secretary, IT and Communications, Andhra Pradesh

www.eIndIA.net.in