Internet of Things Could Bridge Rural and Urban India

By siliconindia | Friday, 25 March 2016, 11:40 Hrs

BENGALURU: Some call it the fourth industrial revolution or "industry 4.0"; for others, the time when machines can "talk" at "smart" factories and "connected" homes to make your life better is here. But for India, Internet of Things (IoT) can bring a real revolution: empowering millions in rural areas and connecting "humans" to the mainstream.

A well-connected nation is the first step towards a well-served nation and, hence, connecting rural India to the IoT will provide the much-needed bridge between urban and rural India.

"It is a surefire way of channelling the benefits of a digital economy to the largest part of the country. IoT will enable delivery of education, health, governance and financial services to otherwise underserved areas," Oracle India managing director Shailender Kumar stressed.

For example, most patients in rural areas do not have access to specialists. Thus, several large hospitals in the metros are beginning to offer remote consulting services in rural villages using media-rich network capabilities.

"The doctors can see and interact with patients in remote telemedicine centres, with the case history and medical data automatically transmitted to the doctor for analysis. Similarly, the IoT technology can be leveraged to offer high-quality remote education in high schools across the country," Shailendra Kumar told IANS.

The IoT connectivity also offers a host of development opportunities to untapped areas, including manufacturing and e-commerce to market local and traditional products.

"A host of 'localisation' technologies can help different regions to communicate; so language is not a barrier. Relevant information and updates can be provided in local languages and scripts," the Oracle executive added.

According to K.S. Viswanathan, vice president (industrial initiative) at apex IT body Nasscom (National Association of Software and Services Companies), as IoT emerges as the next big thing to become a $300 billion (roughly 22,41,307 crores) global industry by 2020, India is all set to capture at least 20 percent market share in the next five years.

"The IoT is dramatically alerting manufacturing, energy, transportation, medical and other industrial sectors worldwide," said Viswanathan while launching the "Nasscom IoT Centre of Excellence" in Coimbatore last week.

Andhra Pradesh has taken a lead when it comes to leveraging the IoT potential in the country. The state government has approved the first-of-its-kind IoT policy with an aim to turn the state into an IoT hub by 2020 and tap 10 percent market share in the country.

Source: IANS