President of India to Launch AMRITA-ISRO VRC Network on July 6, 2005 at AMRITA University Campus in Coimbatore Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, a multi-campus, multi-disciplinary University is collaborating with ISRO, India's foremost agency for space technology and research, to launch the AMRITA-ISRO VRC Satellite Network, a comprehensive Satellite-based Rural Transformation Initiative. ISRO’s vision of the VRC (Village Resource Center) initiative is to create and implement a sustainable, scalable, space technology-supported community infrastructure catalysing the transformation of rural India. The benefits that VRCs are expected to deliver to rural India cover a broad spectrum: Tele-Education: Using best available teachers to deliver superb quality education to large number of rural area schools across the country over the satellite network interactively via multimedia enhanced content; Imparting skill-based training in tune with local needs of the rural population. Tele-Medicine: Delivering basic and specialized healthcare, preventive and diagnostic services digitally at every rural doorstep via satellite networks Tele-Agriculture, Tele-Fisheries, etc.: Enhancing agricultural, fishing, and other rural occupational productivity with active assistance of timely scientific information on earth (soil, land use, etc.), water, weather, etc. Disaster warning and management, etc. Rural entrepreneurship with the help of micro-financing, etc. Thus, the VRC initiative is an ambitious attempt at overall development of India’s vast rural landscape with the help of the best of communication and information technologies. Project Partners The AMRITA-ISRO VRC Project is a one-of-its-kind University-Government-Industry partnership. AMRITA has brought in some of the foremost multinational companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Oracle, TCS, and financial firms such as IL&FS and Dhanalakshmi Bank, as technology and funding partners, to actively support this landmark initiative to launch more than 12 Village Resource Centers on the Satellite Network across India in the first phase. Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham has distinguished itself as a dynamic University well on its way to becoming a world class institution of learning, education, and research in a multitude of disciplines. Amrita has launched numerous projects of both societal importance to our Nation and scientific relevance to the World. The Amrita-ISRO VRC Project stands out among these by taking the benefits of satellite network to the common man’s doorstep. Visit http://www.amrita.edu , http://www.isro.org/pressrelease/Nov05_2004.htm ------------------------------ Manju Vijayakumar, Amrita Deemed University, Amritapuri Campus, Kollam, Kerala __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com President of India to Launch AMRITA-ISRO VRC Network on July 6, 2005 at AMRITA University Campus in Coimbatore http://www.amrita.edu/news/images/vrcapj.jpg Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, a multi-campus, multi-disciplinary University is collaborating with ISRO, India's foremost agency for space technology and research, to launch the AMRITA-ISRO VRC Satellite Network, a comprehensive Satellite-based Rural Transformation Initiative. ISRO’s vision of the VRC (Village Resource Center) initiative is to create and implement a sustainable, scalable, space technology-supported community infrastructure catalysing the transformation of rural India. The benefits that VRCs are expected to deliver to rural India cover a broad spectrum: Tele-Education: Using best available teachers to deliver superb quality education to large number of rural area schools across the country over the satellite network interactively via multimedia enhanced content; Imparting skill-based training in tune with local needs of the rural population. Tele-Medicine: Delivering basic and specialized healthcare, preventive and diagnostic services digitally at every rural doorstep via satellite networks Tele-Agriculture, Tele-Fisheries, etc. : Enhancing agricultural, fishing, and other rural occupational productivity with active assistance of timely scientific information on earth (soil, land use, etc.), water, weather, etc. Disaster warning and management, etc. Rural entrepreneurship with the help of micro-financing, etc. Thus, the VRC initiative is an ambitious attempt at overall development of India’s vast rural landscape with the help of the best of communication and information technologies. Project Partners The AMRITA-ISRO VRC Project is a one-of-its-kind University-Government-Industry partnership. AMRITA has brought in some of the foremost multinational companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Oracle, TCS, and financial firms such as IL&FS and Dhanalakshmi Bank, as technology and funding partners, to actively support this landmark initiative to launch more than 12 Village Resource Centers on the Satellite Network across India in the first phase. Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham has distinguished itself as a dynamic University well on its way to becoming a world class institution of learning, education, and research in a multitude of disciplines. Amrita has launched numerous projects of both societal importance to our Nation and scientific relevance to the World. The Amrita-ISRO VRC Project stands out among these by taking the benefits of satellite network to the common man’s doorstep. Visit http://www.amrita.edu http://www.amrita.edu  , http://www.isro.org/pressrelease/Nov05_2004.htm http://www.isro.org/pressrelease/Nov05_2004.htm ------------------------------ Manju Vijayakumar, Amrita Deemed University, Amritapuri Campus, Kollam, Kerala __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com