Discussed collaboration in the field of IT and Digital Transformation X-International IT forum with BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and member states of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) was held during 5th-6th June 2018 at Khanty Mansiysk, Russia. The IT Forum brought together industry leaders from BRICS and SCO nations as well as other countries to a single platform to interact and discuss collaboration in the field of Information Technology and Digital Transformation. More than 1,500 participants from 55 countries, 43 regions and 26 constituent entities of the Russian Federation participated in the forum, which has established itself as an international venue for discussion of key issues in development and implementation of Digital Economy in the region. The forum was helpful to build strategies for the applicators of Information Technology & e-Governance etc., in the area of digital economy. It was attended by government authorities, professional experts, scientist & business community from various countries.
With the initiative taken by International Cooperation Division of NIC, Shri Prashant Kumar Mittal, Scientist-F (STD) and Shri Dayanand Saha, Scientist-F (STD) were deputed to participate in the IT Forum as official delegates from the Government of India along with representatives from the Embassy of India, Moscow and several industry members from India. During the opening ceremony of the IT Forum, Mr. Alok Raj, Minister (Education), Indian Embassy at Russia highlighted how India is going to be a key market in the future. It will become even more important with growing strategic collaborations in various sectors. He emphasised the importance of strategic partnership between India and Russia.
With an objective to showcase the strength of Indian Information Technology, Start-ups and Electronics Industry, members of Indian delegation also participated as Exhibitors under the India Pavilion coordinated by FICCI at the forum. NIC showcased its various products, platforms and latest initiatives on digital transformation in India from the allocated stall. Live video conferencing with India was also held during the event.
Several sector-specific seminars and B2B sessions were also organised by FICCI at the India pavilion. Several strategic sessions on Smart Cities, Information infrastructure of the digital economy, Tele-medicine and Artificial Intelligence, joint project initiatives in the BRICS and SCO space were also organised at the forum. Shri Prashant Kumar Mittal gave a presentation on “Digital Economy” and Shri Dayanand Saha on “Digital Transformation & Emerging Technologies”.
The state authorities including Governor and IT Minister took keen interest in IT products and services showcased there, especially those in open source or could be customised for their use in open source platform. The functionalities of e-Office, GepNIC, NREGASoft, e-Panchayat, e-PDS, Soil Health Card, MCTS were explained to the visitors.
There were stalls dedicatedly focused to make kids aware about the Digital Technology and its use in their life. They were successful in igniting the interest and inquisitiveness of the children by the means of digital games like chess, robotics, 3D printing, interactive robots, they were given a real-life experience of using government digital services related to health, transportation, education etc., making them ready for brighter future. To make it more interesting and binding, the people at stalls were in the dress of children’s favourite movie characters.