Information Society Watch

February 2006, Madaswamy Moni, I4D

Agriculture is the mainstay of the majority of India’s populace, yet faces severe constraints for sustainable growth and development. This article outlines some key initiatives currently underway in India for agricultural livelihood development through the incorporation of ICTs. Government initiated projects include the Agricultural Resources Information System (AgRIS) for database and decision support mechanisms, District information centres, Rural Knowledge Centres under the Mission 2007 programme for introducing technologies into rural livelihoods, and Agricultural Marketing Information System Network (AGMARKNET) for setting up rural based wholesale markets. These initiatives have potential to play a major role in enabling development of rural sustainable livelihoods through active engagement of ICT related processes.

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