Minister for Information Technology K.T. Rama Rao defined the present era as the age of digital revolution and urged youth to equip themselves with skills required, and be prepared to rule the world in the field of their choice.
Addressing a huge gathering of school students after launching the Cyient Digital Centres in government schools here on Monday, Mr. Rama Rao said the digital revolution followed the green revolution and industrial revolution, and India is poised to reap the highest benefits of it, thanks to the high quotient of its population below 25 years of age.
Hyderabad is home to thousands of IT companies, providing direct employment to four lakh people, and indirect employment to three times the number, he said. Exhorting the students to follow the lead of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and that of Google chief Sundar Pichai, Mr. Rama Rao said education alone would help them to achieve such leadership positions. Showering praise upon the Executive Chairperson of the Cyient Ltd., B.V.R. Mohan Reddy for the Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, he urged other corporate companies to emulate him and support the society.
Speaking earlier, Mr. Mohan Reddy explained the initiative and heaped praise on the Telangana State government for promoting IT in a big way through T-Hub, TASK programme and its IT policy. World is soon going to be digitally connected, and only those with knowledge will succeed in it. Cyient aims to create digitally empowered communities, in its give-back to the society, Mr. Reddy said, and explained about the achievements of 16 government schools adopted by the company under its CSR initiative.
The digital centres are being set up in 54 government schools of Serilingampally mandal in Ranga Reddy district, on 25 anniversary of the company.
More than 20,000 underprivileged children will benefit from the centres, apart from 1,000 community members from surrounding areas of each centre, a statement from the company said.
Minister for Finance Etala Rajender vouched that the second most important duty of the Telangana State government, after providing sustenance to its poor, is to see that they stand on their own feet by providing them education.
The government aims to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor, he vouched.
Nasscom chairperson R. Chandrasekhar, Minister P. Mahender Reddy, MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, legislators Arikepudi Gandhi and Janardhan Reddy, and district Collector M. Raghunandan Rao were amid a host of dignitaries and bureaucrats who attended the event.