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Substantial growth in demand for PCs and internet has been experienced in the recent past. In India the rural areas can provide the same services that are being provided from Indian metros to US Clients. A call center based on local language or a data processing / entry center for Indian MNCs where content is being processed / entered by rural folks will offer the same advantages as off shoring to India from U.S.

Another significant advantage that the products from rural areas have in comparison with the other products that are being sold in the virtual world is the exclusivity. E-Commerce has increased the reach and is a new source of infomediary model for these products. Consumer electronics or air tickets which are being sold through internet has lower percentage of conversion rates ie with respect to the number of users who visit the product on a web page and the number of users who buy them. Researches have shown that buyers use e-commerce for a virtual window shopping before making the actual buying decision. Even though the exclusivity of rural products will give it a tremendous advantage the initial challenge lies in building trust and brand name in the virtual world .

A major challenge is the financing parts of all these initiatives and it includes funding infrastructure developments designed to enhance rural India’s ability to participate in the information economy. This can be done by those stakeholders who will benefit from rural e-commerce and improvement of telecommunication infrastructure in general. For example, a sugar factory in Nellikuppam in the south of Tamil Nadu has reportedly funded 65 local Internet Kiosks. Sugarcane farmers who supply to this company can check their account details online and track information on fertilizer and pesticide prices and make orders when needed. The facility lessens their trouble and cost of bus ride to the factory for getting such information. This and similar isolated projects are indicating that there is scope for expansion of market for information and IT enabled transactions. However, there is need for socio-economic research to establish the nature of policy stimulus needed to evoke market spontaneity so that success stories are replicated elsewhere.

Recommendations

Rural India cannot afford to ignore the changes being wrought by the information economy, nor can they afford to just sit back and passively wait to receive its benefits in the form of more convenient access to products and services, information and entertainment. The basic steps to increase the awareness and popularity of the IT in rural areas has to be proactively taken. Some of the initiatives that can be made to increase the awareness and popularity of IT are

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* Contributed by -
Lijo Isac,
MBA (FT), Batch of 2006,
Faculty Of Management Studies,
Delhi University, Delhi.