Telecom must create more applications: Pitroda

Hyderabad, Jan 15 (UNI) National Knowledge Commission (NKC) Chairman Sam Pitroda today said the challenges before the telecom industry were to make maximum applications with the existing technology.

Talking to newspersons here on the sidelines of a programme, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Mr Pitroda said ''telecom access has improved substantially since the last decade. It is time to create more telecom applications, which will enable the common man to access information and services of education, health and agriculture sectors.'' Stating that seven million new phones were being added every month in the country, he said cell phones have become 'life style managing tolls' in the telecom revolution.

Observing that the country was facing severe shortage of manpower in IT, research, agriculture and other sectors, Mr Pitroda said 'it is difficult to sustain nine per cent growth, if we failed to meet manpower demands in future.'' Centre had allocated Rs three trillion for education in the 11th Plan-- five times more than the previous Plan-- he said and added that the NKC had recommended to the government to promote higher education under Public and Private Partnership (PPP) mode, in collaboration with the R and D centres and industry.

The NKC Chairman said he met Chief Minister Y S Rajasekahra Reddy this morning and briefed him about the Commission's recommendations on promotion of education in the state.

The government was advised to set up a Board for under-graduate education, he added.

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