[Fsf-friends] NEWS: Microsoft signs agreements with Haryana, Punjab

[Frederick Noronha (FN)]

Microsoft signs agreements with Haryana, Punjab

>From Indo-Asian News Service

Chandigarh, Sep 11 (IANS) Software giant Microsoft India will set up a
research laboratory in Haryana to promote the use of Hindi in computer
applications and help accelerate e-governance in Punjab.

"Microsoft Corporation India will set up a research and development
laboratory at Kurukshetra University for the promotion of Hindi in computer
application," a Haryana government official said here Thursday.

The decision was taken at a meeting between Haryana Chief Minister Om
Prakash Chautala and Microsoft India managing director Rajiv Kaul.

Microsoft and the Punjab government Thursday signed an agreement in the
presence of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Kaul to jointly work towards
accelerating e-governance at different levels.

They will also jointly work on information and communication technology
education to make Punjab a "knowledge rich" state.

In his meeting with Kaul, Chautala suggested that care should be taken while
developing Hindi software to use words that would be easy to understand and
simple to write.

Chautala was all praise for the contribution made by Microsoft in promoting
IT, especially at Gurgaon, adjoining New Delhi. Haryana's proximity to the
national capital and its investor-friendly climate were added attractions
for entrepreneurs, he noted.

A Punjab government official said the agreement with Microsoft was aimed to
facilitate greater transparency, better citizen services, reduced cost of
operations, enhanced agility in governance and to make the people of Punjab
realise their potential by using IT.

Microsoft will set up two centres of excellence for e-governance in
Chandigarh and Jalandhar in collaboration with the Punjab government's IT
department.

These centres will showcase Microsoft technologies and solutions and
demonstrate the interoperability of Microsoft technologies with other
platforms. They will also be used to train Punjab government personnel.

--Indo-Asian News Service