Centre for Internet and Society

Andaman and Nicobar Chapter

praskrishna — 2014-03-06T16:18:42Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/andaman-nicobar.pdf

MHRD and Planning Commission Conference on Higher Education

praskrishna — 2014-03-06T07:28:39Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/blogs/education-conference-bombay.pdf

Constitution of the High Level Advisory Committee (HLAC) on National Policy on Universal Electronic Accessibility

praskrishna — 2014-04-06T06:46:15Z

The Centre for Internet and Society has been invited to serve on the high level committee on electronic accessibility policy constituted by the Government of India.

Click to read the notification issued by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/hlac-national-policy-universal-electronic-accessibility

APC Event at Wedgewood

praskrishna — 2014-03-06T05:49:43Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/apc-wedgewood-event.pdf

MAG Meeting Minutes

praskrishna — 2014-03-06T05:27:31Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/mag-feb-10-2014.pdf

Stakeholders meeting to discuss the NCAER Report on "Parallel Imports"

praskrishna — 2014-04-01T10:42:04Z

Nehaa Chaudhari will be participating in this meeting to be held in New Delhi on March 26, 2014.

The Ministry of Human Resource Development is organizing a meeting to discuss the comments/views of all stakeholders on the Report of National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER) on "the Impact of Parallel Imports of Books, Films/Music and software on the Indian Economy with special reference to students". The meeting will be held under the Chairpersonship of Smt. Veena Ish, JS (BP&CR) on March 26, 2014 at 2.00 p.m.

Download a copy of the Report of the NCAER on Parallel Imports here.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/stakeholders-meeting-to-discuss-ncaer-report-on-parallel-imports

DH Workshop January 28

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T12:20:48Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/dh-workshop-january-28-2014.pdf

“The Internet and Controls: A Disturbing Scenario”

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T12:09:11Z

Prof. Mohan SundaraRajan, a renowned science writer will give a talk at the Bangalore International Centre in TERI on March 7, 2014 at 6.30 p.m. Sunil Abraham will chair and moderate the session.

See the invite below. Event details are also posted on the website of Citizen Matters.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/the-internet-and-controls-a-disturbing-scenario

‘Mobile’ voters may sway polls

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:55:24Z

BABALAL Patel’s tiny tea stall in Mumbai is a long way from Silicon Valley. It is not even that close to Bangalore, the Indian equivalent.

The article by Avantika Chilkoti was published in BDlive on March 5, 2014. Sunil Abraham is quoted.

But one night this month, this ramshackle shop became the venue for a social media experiment that highlights the hi-tech face of electioneering in India, the world’s largest democracy. A crowd gathered outside to watch two television screens showing a live broadcast with politician Narendra Modi as he answered questions the audience submitted by text message.

Similar "tea parties" were held across India, designed to ram home Modi’s humble background as a tea seller and his technological credentials. The nationwide event, organised by using mobile technology more commonly seen in US presidential campaigns, signals a shift in Indian politics.

For decades, political campaigns in India have centred around colossal rallies and billboard advertising. But a growing population of young people, rising internet use and the ubiquity of cellphones mean this year’s battle is playing out equally fiercely online.

"We are moving far ahead of saying that we are building ‘likes’ on social media," says Arvind Gupta, head of information technology and social media for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"Organisation is being done using digital. So if I’m going to tell everybody there’s an event tomorrow, it can be posted on Facebook, websites, on SMS, on WhatsApp, though the real meeting is happening on the ground."

These techniques, which became familiar during the Arab uprisings of North Africa, are an increasingly important part of communication strategy ahead of a national election that must be held in the next three months, and of which the outcome many believe will be close.

Gupta believes parties are fighting what he calls a "postmodern election" for up to 160 — largely urban — seats out of a total of 543. More than half the 50-strong team working on communications for the BJP are dedicated to digital campaigning.

India’s internet user base reached a point of inflection last year, exceeded 200-million. While that is a fraction of the 1.3-billion population, prompting many to question the power of social media, use is far greater among urban and young voters, millions of whom will be eligible to vote for the first time.

"Social media is suddenly becoming important, not for all constituencies, but for urban constituencies, because for the first time the urban youth and the educated class are very much glued into the election and showing interest," says Rajeeva Karandikar, a statistician and election analyst.

Modi, chief minister of Gujarat, has adapted particularly quickly to the changing environment. He captured the public imagination by using holograms to address rallies and Google Hangouts to interact with the diaspora. He has 3.4-million Twitter followers and more than 10.6-million "likes" on his Facebook page, thanks in part to a slick social media team led by high-profile technology entrepreneurs.

By contrast, Rahul Gandhi, the reticent, undeclared candidate for the incumbent Congress party, does not even have a verified Twitter account.

Some were disappointed by low attendance at the national "tea parties", but the events were lauded for being interactive and, perhaps most important in a country where newspaper readership remains high, grabbed column inches in the press. The audience could speak directly to Modi at venues with a two-way video link and the footage was immediately available on YouTube.

"While answering each question, Modi has a point of view," says Pratik Patel, 28, a chartered accountant who organised the event at his grandfather’s tea shop. "He doesn’t have two ways of looking at the same thing — this helps him to be more decisive and forward thinking."

Social media provide swathes of information to India’s political parties, as they copy the sophisticated data analysis used by US President Barack Obama’s campaigns.

From its offices in suburban Mumbai, digital marketing group Pinstorm tracks social media discussions at constituency level and identifies significant supporters or critics. It describes the service as an early warning system or "social radar", which allows parties to mobilise workers rapidly to oppose or support a point of view.

Sceptics argue, however, that social media have insufficient traction in India to affect results of the coming poll. But the size of the user base does not reflect its full power. Educated, influential Indians use these digital networks and the online debate shapes views in traditional media that reach a wider audience.

"The theory is that since the elites are connected and have more time to spare on social media, let us use social media and the internet more generally to influence discourse through these elites," says Sunil Abraham, executive director for the Bangalore-based Centre for Internet and Society. "It’s an indirect route to the vote."

However, an adviser to the Obama campaign warns that, given differences in funding and the environment, India’s politicians should be wary of using the US presidential race as a model. This year, a simpler technology may prove the best tool for campaigns in India: the cellphone.

"Folks look to the Obama campaign for this sort of stuff," says Ethan Roeder, who worked on data for the 2008 and 2012 US presidential campaigns. "But a lot of these international campaigns would do best looking elsewhere for a model.… No campaign in the history of the world has ever spent that much money to elect a single individual to a single office."

India’s version is markedly cheaper, thanks to the roadside chai wallahs and armies of volunteers, pulling in the new breed of voters.

"I have never attended a political rally in my entire life," says Patel, who helped to organise Modi’s nationwide "tea party". "If people want to connect with me they need to connect with me on social media or via e-mail."

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/bd-live-avantika-chilkoti-march-5-2014-mobile-voters-may-sway-polls

India’s ballot battle will also run through Facebook

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:49:29Z

Facebook on Tuesday launched its widely awaited “election tracker” for the upcoming general elections, a move that signals the growing importance of social media as a political tool in a rapidly urbanizing India.

The article by Zia Haq was published in the Hindustan Times on March 4, 2014. Sunil Abraham is quoted.

India’s 2014 ballot battle will run through the social-media world, which could likely influence electoral outcomes by swinging 3-4% votes, as more and more young Indians go online to make sense of politics, according to two new surveys.

In these mostly urbanising seats, social-media usage is now “sufficiently widespread” to influence politics, according to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). An offline study conducted by market research firm TNS and Google India suggested similar shifts.

The Facebook tracker (http://on.fb.me/1g6ZJ3k) will help India’s 93 million Facebook users to see which parties and candidates as well as issues are trending.

Social-media platforms are likely to be influential in 160 of India’s 543 Parliament constituencies, making Facebook and Twitter users the nation’s newest voting bloc, according to the IAMAI survey.

These are constituencies where 10% of the voting population uses social media sites such as Facebook, or where the number of social media users is higher than the winning candidate’s margin of victory at the last election.

Research shows that social media is more persuasive than television ads. Nearly 100 million Indians, or more than Germany’s population, use the Internet each day. Of this, 40 million have assured broadband, the ones most likely to have at least one social media account.

“Unlike Obama who used social media directly for votes, Indian politicians have tended to use it more to mould public discourse,” says Sunil Abraham, the CEO of The Centre for Internet and Society.

“I think these trends are over-hyped and the impact, if any, would only be marginal,” said Communist Party of India MP, Gurudas Dasgupta, who created a Facebook account only last month.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/hindustan-times-zia-haq-march-4-2014-india-s-ballot-battle-will-also-run-through-facebook

India: Privacy Bill will likely reflect EU Directive

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:45:37Z

The Indian Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) called for comments - on 25 February 2014 - on a draft Privacy Protection Bill ('the Bill'). The draft Bill comes after a series of roundtable discussions in 2013. The last CIS roundtable on the Bill, on 19 October 2013, included Jacob Kohnstamm, Chairman of the EU Article 29 Working Party and the Dutch data protection authority, and Christopher Graham, the UK Information Commissioner.

The article was published in DataGuidance on March 3, 2014.

"In its eventual form, I expect [the Bill] will be modelled to a great extent on the European Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC)," Rodney Ryder, Partner at Scriboard, told DataGuidance. "The European Directive is an important model as India moves forward." Data protection in India is currently regulated by the Information Technology Act 2011, however, if enacted, the Bill would introduce the country's first comprehensive privacy regime. In 2013, the European Commission assessed India's data protection regime and decided not to award adequacy recognition at that time.

"If the Bill is introduced in the Winter Session, […] it is likely to […] come into effect either at the end of the year or early in the next year"

The draft Bill regulates collection, storage and processing of personal data, with both monetary and penal penalties yet to be determined for anyone who 'collects, receives, stores, processes or otherwise handles any personal data [except in conformity with the provisions of the Act].' It also establishes an Indian Data Protection Authority (DPA), with the power to investigate data processing and to 'give such directions or pass such orders as are necessary.'

"[Moving forward,] we expect more clarity on the role and functioning of the DPA," Ryder stated. "In the past, the Government of India has not been clear on the role of the DPA. Will this 'authority' have the independent powers and stature of the European Privacy Commissioners? [Additionally,] the complaint mechanism under the Bill requires greater clarity, precision and structure."

Divya Sharma, Legal Director at Bird and Bird LLP, commented, "Considering that India has parliamentary elections scheduled to take place in April 2014, this bill is unlikely to progress further until a new Government takes office in May 2014. […] Any legislation of this nature is unlikely to progress during this Government's tenure."

"If the Bill is introduced in the Winter Session, after due consideration, it is likely to be passed by the end of the Year and come into effect either at the end of the year or early in the next year," said Ryder.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/data-guidance-march-3-2014-india-privacy-bill-will-likely-reflect-eu-directive

ಕನ್ನಡಕ್ಕೆ ಬಲಕೊಡುವ ಕೆಲಸವಾಗಲಿ’

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:33:03Z

Dr. U.B. Pavanaja conducted a 2-day workshop-cum-editathon at Sagara on March 1 and 2, 2014. Vijaya Karnataka published a report on March 2.

Read the original published in Vijaya Karnataka on March 2.

ಸಾಗರ: ಆಯಾ ಕಾಲಘಟ್ಟದ ಸಮಸ್ಯೆ ಗಳಿಗೆ ಭಾಷೆ ಸ್ಪಂದಿಸಬೇಕು. ಎಲ್ಲ ಕಾಲ ಕ್ಕಿಂತಲೂ ಹೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಸಮಸ್ಯೆಗಳನ್ನು ಇಂದು ಪ್ರಾದೇಶಿಕ ಭಾಷೆಗಳು ಎದುರಿಸುತ್ತಿವೆ. ಸಾಂಸ್ಕೃತಿಕ, ಜಾಗತಿಕ ಸವಾಲುಗಳಿವೆ. ಆದ್ದರಿಂದ ಕನ್ನಡಕ್ಕೆ ಬಲಕೊಡುವ ಕೆಲಸ ಆಗಬೇಕೆಂದು ಬರಹಗಾರ ಡಾ.ಸರ್ಫ್ರಾಜ್ ಚಂದ್ರಗುತ್ತಿ ಹೇಳಿದರು.

ಕನ್ನಡ ಟೈಮ್ಸ್ ಮೀಡಿಯಾ ವರ್ಲ್ಡ್ ತನ್ನ ಮೊದಲ ವಾರ್ಷಿಕೋತ್ಸವದ ಅಂಗ ವಾಗಿ ಬಿ.ವಿ.ರವೀಂದ್ರನಾಥ್ ಚಾರ್ಟ ರ್ಡ್ ಅಕೌಂಟೆಂಟ್ ಕಚೇರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕನ್ನಡ ವಿಕಿಪೀಡಿಯ ಹಾಗೂ ಸೆಂಟರ್ ಫಾರ್ ಇಂಟರ್‌ನೆಟ್ ಅಂಡ್ ಸೊಸೈಟಿ ಸಹ ಯೋಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಶನಿವಾರ ಹಮ್ಮಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದ ಕನ್ನಡ ವಿಕಿಪೀಡಿಯ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ಕಾರ‌್ಯಾಗಾರ ಉದ್ಘಾಟಿಸಿ ಅವರು ಮಾತನಾಡಿದರು.

ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ಒಗ್ಗಿಸುವ ಕೆಲಸ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಕಷ್ಟವಾದುದು. ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು, ಭಾವವನ್ನು ಕಟ್ಟಿಕೊಡುವ ಕೆಲಸ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನ ಮಾಡಬಲ್ಲದು. ಜಗತ್ತಿನ ಆಗುಹೋಗುಗಳನ್ನು ಕನ್ನಡ ಭಾಷೆ ಮೂಲಕ ಅರ್ಥಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ಯತ್ನ ಆಗಬೇಕಾಗಿದೆ. ಜೀವ ವೈವಿಧ್ಯ ಕಾಪಾಡು ವಂತೆ ಭಾಷಾ ವೈವಿಧ್ಯ ಕಾಪಾಡಬೇಕು. ಸರಕಾರದ ಜಾಲತಾಣಗಳು ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲೇ ಇರಬೇಕೆಂಬ ಆದೇಶ ಇದುವರೆಗೂ ಅನುಷ್ಠಾನಗೊಂಡಿಲ್ಲ. ಕೇರಳದಲ್ಲಿ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ತಮಿಳು ಭಾಷೆ ಕುರಿತು 2011ರಲ್ಲಿ ರಾಜ್ಯಮಟ್ಟದ ಚರ್ಚೆಯಾಗಿ 140 ಪ್ರಬಂಧಗಳ ಮಂಡನೆ ಮಾಡಲಾ ಗಿತ್ತು. ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು ಸಮಕಾಲೀನಗೊಳಿ ಸುವ ಕೆಲಸಕ್ಕೆ ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಕೈಜೋಡಿಸಬೇಕು. ಕನ್ನಡ ವಿಕಿಪೀಡಿಯದ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಕೆಲಸವನ್ನು ಕನ್ನಡಿಗರು ಬೆಂಬಲಿಸ ಬೇಕೆಂದರು.

ಆಶಯ ಮಾತನಾಡಿದ ಕನ್ನಡ ತಂತ್ರಾಂಶ ಪಂಡಿತ ಡಾ.ಯು.ಬಿ.ಪವನಜ ಮಾತನಾಡಿ, ಮೂಲತಃ ಹವಾಯಿ ಭಾಷೆಯ ಪದವಾಗಿರುವ ವಿಕಿ ಅಂದರೆ ವೇಗ ಎಂದು ಅರ್ಥ. ವೇಗವಾಗಿ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ನೀಡಬಲ್ಲ ವಿಕಿಪೀಡಿಯ ಒಂದು ಸ್ವತಂತ್ರ ವಿಶ್ವಕೋಶ. ಎಲ್ಲರ ಜ್ಞಾನವನ್ನೂ ಒಟ್ಟುಗೂಡಿಸಿ, ಅದು ಪ್ರತಿಯೊಬ್ಬರಿಗೂ ಮುಕ್ತವಾಗಿ ದೊರೆಯುವಂತಾಗ ಬೇಕೆಂಬುದು ವಿಕಿಪೀಡಿಯ ಉದ್ದೇಶ ವಾಗಿದೆ ಎಂದರು. ತಾ.ಪಂ. ಸದಸ್ಯೆ ಜ್ಯೋತಿ ಮಾತನಾಡಿದರು. ಕನ್ನಡ ಟೈಮ್ಸ್ ಮೀಡಿಯಾ ವರ್ಲ್ಡ್ ಗೌರವ ಸಲಹೆಗಾರ ಬಿ.ವಿ.ರವೀಂದ್ರ ನಾಥ್ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷತೆ ವಹಿಸಿದ್ದರು. ಸಂಸ್ಥೆ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಜಿ.ಟಿ.ಶ್ರೀಧರ ಶರ್ಮ, ಚಿನ್ಮಯ ಎಂ.ರಾವ್ ಹೊನಗೋಡು, ಬಿ.ಜಿ.ಮಂಜಪ್ಪ, ವಿದ್ಯಾಧರ ಚಿಪ್ಪಳಿ, ಗಣಪತಿ ಕಾನಗೋಡು, ಬಿ.ಎಸ್.ಚಂದ್ರಶೇಖರ ಹಾಜರಿದ್ದರು. ಸಹನಾ ಜಿ.ಭಟ್ ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥಿಸಿ, ಸತ್ಯನಾರಾಯಣಭಟ್ ಸ್ವಾಗತಿಸಿ, ವೈಶಾಲಿ ವಂದಿಸಿದರು.ಅರುಣ್ ಘಾಟೆ ನಿರೂಪಿಸಿದರು.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/vijay-karnataka-march-2-2014-wikipedia-workshop-coverage

Kannada Wikipedia Workshop (Coverage in Suvarna Prabha)

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:05:23Z

Dr. U.B. Pavanaja conducted a Kannada Wikipedia workshop on March 1, followed a by edit-a-thon on Mar 2, 2014, at Sagara. A report of the inauguration program, appeared in Suvarna Prabha, Sagara on March 1, 2014.

A scanned version of the report is given below. The event was organised by Kannada Times Sagara and co-sponsored by CIS-A2K.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/kannada-wikipedia-workshop-coverage-suvarna-prabha-march-1-2014

Wikipedia Mangalore Workshop (Coverage in Prajavani)

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T11:04:24Z

Dr. U.B.Pavanaja gave a presentation on Wikipedia with a special focus on students and women at Roshini Nilaya, Mangalore on February 26, 2014. An event report was published in Prajavani the following day.

Scanned version of the report published by Prajavani on February 27 is below. The event was organised by Roshini Nilaya and co-sponsored by CS-A2K.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/news/wikipedia-workshop-mangalore-coverage-prajavani-february-27-2014

Wiki Women's Workshop

praskrishna — 2014-03-05T10:37:57Z

As part of the commemoration of the International Women's Day, International Centre Goa (ICG) in association with the Centre for Internet & Society’s Access to Knowledge team is organising a Wiki Women’s Workshop on Sunday, March 9, 2014 from 3.30 p.m. to 6.00 p.m. at ICG – Dona Paula.

8th March is International Women's Day and to celebrate, women in India are organizing edit-a-thons and meetups to create and expand articles of importance to women in Wikipedia in English and various Indian languages. The goal of the month-long event is to encourage more women to contribute to Wikipedia and increase representation of articles related to women in Wikipedia. The event aims at creating new articles, expanding the existing stubs and translating English articles to various Indic languages.

The main aim of the event is to get more women aware about Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects. Participants would be guided on "How to contribute to Wikipedia?" by a hands-on session and make the knowledge available for free.

Click here to view the poster and registration details.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/events/international-womens-day-2014