The state of Gujarat and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) are launching ‘Suryodaya’, a technology-enabled learning program to develop IT talent in the state of Gujarat. The joint program to be conducted by Department of Education, Department of Science and Technology and Tata Consultancy Services will help students upgrade their technology and programming skills, enhance communication and presentation skills as well as work with colleges in the state to update the IT syllabus at select Universities. The program will upgrade student skills in areas like Java technologies, which are in demand currently. The 'Suryodaya' initiative has been launched statewide following a successful two-day pilot involving 1,200 students across 10 colleges conducted last month.

Leveraging the use of technology, the training & assessment will be conducted by TCS using the EDUSAT-Vande Gujarat at the Bhaskaracharya Institute of Space Application and Geo-Informatics (BISAG). Conducted over a period of three months the program consists of ten sessions on Java basics, four sessions on quality in IT and software development life cycle concepts as well as four sessions on soft skills like communications, presentation and interview techniques.

'Suryodaya' will cater to students of the 3rd and 4th year of Engineering (all branches), MCA and MSc Students. Apart from these, the program shall be open to students who have passed out from these streams during 2006 from colleges located in the state of Gujarat. Students from 34 colleges have already registered for the first program.

Speaking about this initiative, Abid Ali Neemuchwala, General Manager and Head - Western Region, Tata Consultancy Services said, "As India continues to enhance its share in the global IT services business, increasing the talent pool for the industry is very important to sustain the growth of Indian IT. Together with the Government of Gujarat, TCS is undertaking a learning initiative to enhance skills of students and make them 'industry ready'."

Gujarat Infomatics Ltd and BISAG will be to coordinate with institutes, enroll students and help provide the required video conferencing /audio facilities, IT labs and support infrastructure, TCS will design the course content, provide faculty, course materials, provide guidance to students through e-mails/telephones and conduct exit test for issue of co branded certification. TCS will also review and recommend course revision of select universities.

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Microsoft India and the Government of Gujarat have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at providing University students and faculty in the state easier access to Information Technology.

This agreement will allow students in Gujarat develop skills on next-generation Microsoft tools and technologies, including .NET, thereby improving their career prospects.

As per the agreement, Microsoft and the Government of Gujarat will work together on several e-governance projects, thereby leveraging IT for programs that impact the common man.

Talking about the initiative, a spokesperson for Microsoft India, said, "Our partnership with the Government of Gujarat is a big step forward towards providing the next generation of India s technologists with in-depth technical skills. It will also help the state in taking its e-governance initiatives to the next level. These efforts will help Gujarat strengthen its position as a leading IT destination in the country, and we are honored that the state has chosen to partner with Microsoft in this journey."

Under the partnership, Microsoft will provide training to students in the pre-final or final year of the Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science and IT stream) and MCA programs, leveraging the BISAG (Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applicatons and Geoinformatics) SATCOM (satellite communications) facility. The faculty in these institutions will also, thereby, get an opportunity to collaborate with experts from across the world, besides getting access to Microsoft s premium technology events. The trained students for their part, will get a chance to work on the e-governance projects undertaken by the State of Gujarat and Microsoft.

Meanwhile, the MoU with the Government of Gujarat is seen as yet another step in Microsoft's long term and sustained efforts to develop and add value to the academic community in the country.

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The 20-acre Special Economic Zone being developed by the IT behemoth Tata Consultancy Services in Gandhinagar district will start functioning in about 18 months from now and emerge as a showcase for information technology destination in India, a company official said today.

Mr Abid Ali Neemuchwala, TCS' General Manager and Head (Western Region), told Business Line here that the company is, at present, working to develop one-lakh square meters in two blocks located just opposite InfoCity near the State Capital. This facility would be 2,200-seater and work for applications development, software, Information Technology and IT-enabled Services (ITeS). The Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, and the TCS Chief Mr S. Ramadorai, laid the foundation for this facility in January this year.

Earlier, he also announced a unique public-private partnership in India by entering into an agreement with the Gujarat Government to upgrade technology talent by imparting short-term programs in `hot' technologies to about 3,000 engineering students across 34 colleges in the State.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/specialeconomiczoneit/
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To market `GeBiz' in India, other countries

STRATEGIC TIE-UP: Kailash Agarwal (left), Regional Head-E-Governance practice, NIIT Technologies, exchanging documents with Singapore's Defence Science and Technologies Agency (DSTA) Director Carol Lo (right), in New Delhi on Wednesday. Arvind Thakur, CEO, NIIT Technologies, looks on.

NEW DELHI: NIIT Technologies on Wednesday announced a strategic tie-up with the Defence, Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) of Singapore to develop and market GeBiz, the electronic business portal of the Singapore Government, in India and other countries. The GeBiz solution, developed by the DSTA, is primarily targeted at Central and State public sector enterprises (PSEs) and corporate buyers.

"Under this complex multi-million dollar marketing tie-up, we are looking at the sale of one solution in the next one year completely at the department and ministerial levels, as government organisations have a unique requirement of electronic government procurement,'' NIIT CEO Arvind Thakur told reporters here.

Under the tie-up, the DSTA will outsource the development and maintenance support of GeBiz to NIIT Tech, which will then customise the application and market the solution to other governments in South Asia, West Asia and Central Europe.

While the Intellectual Property Rights of the GeBiz solution will remain with the Singapore Government, NIIT will customise the solution, to be called NIIT GeBiz, in accordance with the country's requirements. The GeBIZ portal (www.gebiz.gov.sg) was implemented for Singapore's government agencies in 2000. — UNI

http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/05/stories/2006100501821800.htm