Google, Intel, and Tata Partner on Rural Internet Initiative for Women

Advertisement
By Indo Asian News Service | Updated: 4 July 2015 10:59 IST
In an innovative move to educate rural women about the internet, Tata Trusts and Google India on Friday announced a special programme to send 1,000 specially designed 'Internet Cycle Carts' to remote villages.

Built on the back of a regular bicycle, the carts are modelled on India's traditional distribution system used to ferry everything from ice-creams to industrial goods and will help empower the rural communities.

The cycle cart operator or 'Internet Saathi' would train women and act like the postman, who was the single point contact for the village with the outside world both for information and communication.

Advertisement

Tata Trusts will manage the on-ground rollout with its partners, while Google India will invest in providing the internet-enabled carts and training content, bringing India closer to the Digital Vision.

The launch was attended by Tata Trusts chairman Ratan Tata and Google India and southeast Asia vice president Rajan Anandan.

Advertisement

The Cycle Carts initiative will provide women with basic training in the usage and benefits of the internet.

"While women are making rapid progress on adoption of internet in urban areas, women in rural India are getting left behind. Today only 12 percent of internet users in rural India are women," said Anandan.

Advertisement

"We need to come together to address this challenge and empower women in rural India through training and programmes that can truly transform their lives."

Tata Trusts executive trustee R. Venkataramanan said: "Internet connectivity has become a fundamental need in any society and improves literacy and access to information that is instrumental for socio-economic development.

Advertisement

"Through this joint initiative with Google, we will reach out to the rural communities, especially women in our country and we are confident that it will contribute towards their empowerment and also self-sustenance."

The Cycle Carts initiative will pedal off from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Jharkhand before rolling out in other parts of India, covering 4,500 villages, half a million women and rural communities over the next 18 months.

The Cycle Cart would be available in the village/cluster for at least two days every week for four-six months, creating awareness and imparting adequate training to the women before moving to the next village/cluster.

The initiative is being supported by Intel, a long term partner of Google India's Helping Women Get Online programme, creating internet awareness among 50 million women in India.

Tata Trusts, engaged in multiple socio-cultural and academic activities, is spread across 170 districts in 16 Indian states, reaching out to over 800,000 homes.

 

Get your daily dose of tech news, reviews, and insights, in under 80 characters on Gadgets 360 Turbo. Connect with fellow tech lovers on our Forum. Follow us on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News for instant updates. Catch all the action on our YouTube channel.

Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Poco M8s 5G Debuts Globally With 7,000mAh Battery: See Price, Features
  2. OnePlus Ace 6 Ultra's Key Specifications Surface via Geekbench Listing
  3. Motorola Edge 70 Fusion Review
  4. Redmi K90 Max Debuts With Active Cooling Fan, 8,550mAh Battery: See Price
  5. Oppo Find X9 Ultra Battery, Chipset Details Revealed Ahead of Global Launch
  6. Oppo Find X9 Ultra With 200-Megapixel Periscope Camera Launched Globally
  7. Motorola Razr 2026 Launch Date Teased Alongside Design and Colour Options
  8. Vivo X300 FE Roundup: Expected Price in India, Specifications
  9. iPhone 18 May Not Arrive With Hardware Upgrades as Apple Cuts Costs: Report
  10. Oppo Enco Clip 2 With Open-Ear Design, Launched Alongside Oppo Watch X3 Mini
  1. NASA Shuts Down Voyager 1 Instrument to Extend Mission Life in Deep Space
  2. Oppo Enco Clip 2 With Open-Ear Design, Up to 40 Hours Total Battery Life Launched Alongside Oppo Watch X3 Mini
  3. Vivo Y6t Launched With 6,500mAh Battery, Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 SoC: Price, Specifications
  4. OCBC Partners Lion Global Investors and DigiFT to Launch Tokenised Gold Fund With GOLDX Token
  5. Oppo Pad 5 Pro Launched With 13,380mAh Battery, Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC Alongside Oppo Pad Mini: Price, Features
  6. Redmi K90 Max Launched With Dimensity 9500 SoC, 8,550mAh Battery and Active Cooling Fan: Price, Specifications
  7. Oppo Find X9 Ultra Launched With Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC, 200-Megapixel Periscope Camera: Price, Specifications
  8. Oppo Find X9s Pro Launched With 200-Megapixel Cameras, 7,025mAh Battery: Price, Specifications
  9. OnePlus Ace 6 Ultra Geekbench Listing Reveals MediaTek Dimensity 9500 Chip, 16GB RAM
  10. Motorola Edge 70 Pro+ Leaked Renders Hint at Design, Five Colour Options
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.