Information technology and public policy: a socio-human profile of Indian digital revolution

The paper describes the role of information and Information Technology (IT) and discusses the infrastructure, human resources, telecommunications, and research and development in IT within the Indian context. It highlights the features of the liberalization of the Indian government software policy of 1986, including developments in networking and the growth of the IT industry in the country, and documents the proliferation and application of IT in India in various fields. It provides a detailed look at the socio-human dimensions of IT in terms of its impact on the socioeconomic conditions of the people, especially in the countryside. The paper describes the limitations of the Indian digital revolution in reaching out to the general masses and the various factors responsible for the lopsided character of the information revolution.