verty of a country is a function of poor human skills and low productivi of natural resources. India ranks 135th out of 172 countries on the scale human development index. It has high infant mortality rate, poor literacy and low per capita consumption of electricity. A very large majority of people are still deprived of clean drinking water and basic health facilities. Efforts made by the Union and state governments have made only marginal difference as the population explosion has outstripped the improvement and expansion of education and health care facilities.
Green revolution has brought India close to self sufficiency in major food items but productivity of land is still quite low compared to that in many developed and
developing countries. The advent of information technology in such a scenario has generated high hopes among many Indians who are confident that optimum use of information technology can break the vicious circle of poverty and backwardness and before long,
India can take her legitimate place among comity of advanced nations of the world. Nature and uses of information technology have been lucidly explained by William James Stover in his book "Information Technology in the Third World" in the following manner, "A combination of computers, satellite telephones, radio, television and other electronics, information technology is a means of communication and information management which provides more effective and more efficient interaction. It has become the source of new jobs, industry and recreation in advanced countries,
producing qualitative change in the way we live". Beginning with invention ofprinting press by John Gutenberg of Germany in the 15th Century,Newspaper, radio and later television have reduced the timespan to almost zero between the creation of information/knowledge to its communication to the people across the globe.
