Real Estate

Rentals

Cars

Today's Paper

Going Out Guide

Find&Save

PostT V Politics Opinions Local Sports National World Business Tech Lifesty le Entertainment Jobs More

Innovations
It's all about what's next

se vih cr A

renroC s'ro tid E

nmuloC

aideM lai co S

e cap S

ygolonh ceT

How technology can unleash Indias full

potential
BY VIVEK WADHWA May 12 at 7:50 am

eroM

stne m moC

)APE/ at p uG v e e j n aS( .yt ir e ps or p d n a ss e n i p p a h ot y a w e ht ev a p l l i w y g o l o n hc eT

Indians are fed up with government inaction and corruption. They want accountability,
better education for their children, improved health care, and economic prosperity. And
they want change now. Technology-led solutions may be the only way for Indias new
government to rapidly uplift its population. Large-scale government programs and
social welfare will take too long. Here are seven ways technology can help:
1. Smartphones: A great equalizer.
Note how mobile phones transformed India within a decade: from being objects of
luxury, they became a basic necessity. Landlines were once scarce, and phone service
was unreliable and unaffordable. Now, India has amongst the best and cheapest phone
connections in the world and has a billion cellphones.
Tremendous possibilities are opening up as cellphones evolve into smartphones and
as tablet computers become as cheap as cell phones. Most of India now has affordable
3G or 4G data connections. This means that Indias masses will soon have access to the
same tools and knowledge as the elite of Silicon Valley: they can watch YouTube videos,
visit Web sites, download apps, connect to sensor-based devices, and can network with
people from all over the world. They can crowdsource solutions to problems and

accelerate social change.

2. A path toward bureaucratic transparency.
Corruption has eroded Indias fabric, and can be eradicated only from the ground up.
India spends tens of billions of dollars every year on social programs, but most of this is
siphoned off. The key to eliminating corruption is to automate procurement processes,
cut out the middlemen; reduce bureaucracy; and eliminate the information gap between
the government and public.
To facilitate the recording and reporting of corruption, there need to be governmentsupported, but privately managed, Web sites such as Ipaidabribe.com as well as
smartphone apps. E-governance needs to be implemented across the board, both
national and at a state level. All government tenders and procurement, budget
reporting, and status monitoring need to be transparent, the data being immediately
available to the public via the Internet. Data-analytics technologies, such as those being
developed by Calcutta-based Quantta, can be used to monitor public data and to
independently report on corruption and abuse.

Watches- Flat
Rs.1000 Off
watchkart.com

Grand Sale- Get Flat Rs.1000 Off on

Branded Watches. CodeFestiveWatch

3. A health care revolution.

India lacks knowledge of disease prevention and cure. But an ocean of such information
is freely available on the Internet. Using smartphones or Internet-connected tablets,
anyone can read about the latest medical advances, visit online health-discussion
forums, and learn from others who have the same symptoms and provide each other
with support. Villagers in remote parts of India can seek help from doctors anywhere in
the world via two-way video and e-mail.
Over the last few years, sensor devices that can monitor things such as movement,
temperature, humidity, gas, and pressure have increased exponentially in capability and
fallen dramatically in priceand in size. There have been similar advances in microand nanofluidics, which use small computer chips to test for disease.
Smartphones already contain a wide assortment of sensors, including an accelerometer,
GPS, and a high-definition camera. These can be connected to external sensors to
record electrocardiograms and measure blood pressure, blood glucose, blood oxygen,
and breathing. The Public Health Foundation of India, for example, has built a device
that can perform 33 diagnostic procedures, including measurements of blood pressure,
sugar, and hemoglobin; ECGs; and tests for pregnancy, dengue, and malaria. The device
retails for $600, but in high volumes can be produced for less than $100.
This means that even the poorest communities can gain access to sophisticated medical
care.

4. Fix education: A laptop and digital tutor for every child.

Tens of millions of children in India receive substandard education or none at all. It will
take years to train new teachers and build schools, and an entire generation will be left
out. The only practical solution is to roll out digital tutors with the help of NGOs so that
communities can uplift themselves.
To transform its education system, Uruguay started an ambitious project in 2008 to
give a laptop to every child. According to Miguel Brechner, who heads this program, it
has turned a privilege Internet access and a computer into a right. It has enabled
every child to get a basic education even in regions where teachers are in scarce
supply. Children across Uruguay have become computer literate and are teaching their
parents. They are writing computer code and creating apps. This is what could happen
in India and could leap even further forward.
Indias $35 tablet, Aakash, had a rocky start, but led to the production of inexpensive
tablets that are being used today even by children in Silicon Valley. These tablets were
first tested by students in the elite Palo Alto High School and then given away in two
hackathons to poor children. Newer generations of them, with the same specs as the
original iPad, can be produced in high volumes in India for less than $50, according to
Datawind, the maker of the original Aakash tablets. Prices will continue to fall,
capabilities will increase, and there will be many suppliers.
There are thousands of apps available today that can teach subjects such as history,
geography, music, mathematics, and science. Adaptive learning platforms will tailor the
learning path to the needs of the student. For example, if a child likes reading books,
the digital tutor can teach mathematics and science in a traditional way. If that doesnt
work, the tutor can try videos. If thats too boring, it can switch to games or puzzles.
The digital tutor of the future will take students into holographic simulations to teach
history, culture, and geography. It will provide equally good education to all children,
rich and poor.
5. Clean up water sanitation.
The leading causes of disease in India and the developing world are waterborne viruses.
Affluent Indians spend billions of dollars annually on bottled water, but this isnt always
safe. A technology from Chile could help solve this problem. The Advanced Innovation
Center (AIC) has developed a system that converts water into a plasma state through a
high-intensity electrical field and eliminates microbiological content through
electroporation, oxidation, ionization, UV and IR radiation, and shockwaves. It was
tested in a Santiago slum in mid-2011 and has worked flawlessly ever since. After
visiting Chile and seeing this in operation, I had AIC founder Alfredo Zolezzi bring the
technology to the United States. It was tested for conformance to EPA guidelines by the
leading U.S. authority, NSF International. It broke the scale and exceeded NSFs
highest standards. It killed 100 percent of all bacteria and viruses in the 24 heavily
tainted samples that NSF tested.
Village-sized units of the plasma-based water-sanitization technologywhich consume
less energy than a hairdryerwill cost around $500 when mass produced. This
technology is being rolled out in South America later this year and could also be brought
to India. Where there is no electricity infrastructure, it can be powered by diesel
generators or solar cells.
6. Agricultural automation, believe in it!

ylpeR

e kiL

. n ez it ic yr ev e r of yt ic irtc e l e e l b a i l er d n a r et a w n a e lc ht i w yrt n u oc a g n i e b t u o b a m a er d n ac
a i d nI n e hT . n o i l l im 0 5 7 w o l e b kc a b n o it a l u p o p r u oy t eG .sr em us n oc y gr e n e d n a s ht u om yr g n u h y n am
os g n it a erc t i uQ .s a e d i es e ht f o y n a n a ht er om ,y l im aF r eP d l i h C e nO ht i w sm e l b or p st i x if n ac a i d nI

. l ort n oc es icr ex e r ev e n y e ht ,y e n om e ht n i st u p t n em nr ev o g n e h w es u ac e b , er uS

l o n hc et- w o h/ 2 1/ 5 0/ 4 1 0 2/ p w/s n o it av o n n i/s g o l b/m oc.ts o p n ot g n i hs a w. w w w//: ptt h( 0 3 5 0+TMG MP 4 5: 1 1 4 1 0 2/ 2 1/ 5

"s et is b eW , d e g a n am y l et av ir p t u b , d etr o p p us-t n em nr ev o g e b ot d e e n er e ht"

ylpeR

AES niPK

e kiL

.s a er a es e ht ot yt ir o ir p ev i g
l l i w t n em nr ev o g w e n e ht t a ht l uf e p o h er a s n a i d nI e w d n a e g n a hc a d et n a w s n a i d nI y h w n os a er e ht
u- n ac-y g o l o n hc et- w o h/ 2 1/ 5 0/ 4 1 0 2/ p w/s n o it av o n n i/s g o l b/m oc.ts o p n ot g n i hs a w. w w w//: ptt h( 0 3 5 0+TMG MP 2 0: 2 1
s i stc e ps a es e ht n i t n em p o l ev e d f o kc a l ,tc af nI .y a d ot s d e e n a i d nI t a h w t u o b a n o t o ps s i a w h d aW rM

tsr iF ts e w e N

reyiA R R

All Comments

Conversation Live
. )1= g ni t nemm oc&/lai t ne t o p -ll u f -sai d ni - hsael n u - nac -y g ol o n hce t
-w o h/21/50/4102/ pw/s n oi tav o n ni/s g ol b/m oc. ts o p n o t g ni hsaw.www// : p t t h= n oi ta ni tse d
?w o hs/eli f or p/ tm gm tca/m oc. ts o p n o t g ni hsaw. t n u occa// :s p t t h ( .w o n sser d da liam
-e r u oy y firev ro )/ g ni t nemm oc -r o f - deri u qer -sser d da -liam -e - dei firev/82/40/4102/ pw/ ts o p
-e h t -ksa/s g ol b/m oc. ts o p n o t g ni hsaw.www// : p t t h ( er om nrae L
.tne m moc ot red ro ni sse rdda lia m -e deifi rev a evah ot deen uoY .etelp mocni si elifo rp ruoY

.) 1=gnitn e m mo c & snoit a vonni-no _ s s r= s s rpw?/l aitn etop-lluf- s aidni

-h s a elnu-n a c- ygolonh c et-woh/ 2 1/ 5 0/ 4 1 0 2/pw/ snoit a vonni/ sgolb/ mo c.t sopnotgnih s aw.www//:ptth=noit anit s ed
?woh s/ elifo rp/t mg mt c a/ mo c.t sopnotgnih s aw.tnuo c c a//: sptth(
tn e m mo c ot r ed ro ni ti et adpu es a e lP . et e l pm oc n i s i e l if or p r u oY

y ciloP noi s su c siD

2 Comments

.y e l ekr eB a i nr of i l a C f o yt isr ev i n U d n a l o o hcS w a L dr avr a H e d u lc n i st n emt n i o p p a ts a p

s i H .s e it isr ev i n u yr omE d n a yt ir a l u g n iS t a r a l o hcs d e hs i u g n its i d d n a l o o hcs g n ir e e n i g n e s ek u D
t a n o it az i l a icr emm o C hcr a es e R d n a p i hsr u e n er p ert nE r of r et n e C e ht t a hcr a es er f o r otc er i d
,yt isr ev i n U dr of n atS t a ec n a nr ev oG et ar o pr o C r of r et n e C kc o R e ht t a w o l l ef a s i awhd aW k e viV

Researchers send experiments to space to

tap zero gravity's potential

India reinvent itself.

Also on Innovations

priority to removing the obstacles and to providing the technology infrastructure to let
American innovation are available to India. The incoming government has to give
The playing field has leveled, and the same technology advances that are propelling
products for Indiaand the worldthat are as innovative as those from Silicon Valley.
There is nothing to prevent Indias entrepreneurs from taking the lead in developing
technologies; and new home-monitoring and -automation systems.
They can be developing sensor-based systems for diverse industries; smart-city
innovative new consumer products; and customizing 3D designs for global consumers.
components. They can be building robots that automate manufacturing; designing

Schoolchildren should be provided with 3D printers, robot-building kits, and sensor

7. Lets harness the impressive talents of the young.
technologies. Dairy and farm production can be automated through CRM-like systems.
humidity and optimize watering. Aquaculture can be optimized with on-farm diagnostic
There are also great possibilities in agriculture. Sensors can be used to monitor soil

SUBSCRIBE

PostTV

Mor e w a y s t o g et u s

Politics

Opinions

Local

Sports

National

Con t a ct Us

World

Business

Tech

A bou t Us

Lifesty le

Entertainm ent

Jobs

Pa r t n er s

Home delivery

Washington Post Live

Help & Contact Info

In the community

Digital Subscription

Reprints & Permissions

Reader Representative

Careers

Gift Subscription

Post Store

Digital Advertising

PostPoints

Mobile & Apps

Photo Store

New spaper Advertising

New spaper in Education

e-Replica

New s Service & Syndicate

Digital Publishing Guidelines

New sletter & Alerts

Archive
RSS
Facebook
Tw itter

washingtonpost.com

Ad Choices

1996-2014 The Washington Post Terms of Service Privacy Policy

Submissions and Discussion Policy

RSS Terms of Service