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Sam Pitroda: Business Process Innovation Award

Dear ATCA Colleagues; dear IntentBloggers

[Please note that the views presented by individual contributors are not necessarily representative of the views of ATCA, which is neutral. ATCA conducts collective Socratic dialogue on global opportunities and threats.]

Re: Sam Pitroda is honoured for Business Process Innovation

Sam Pitroda -- Chairman, National Knowledge Commission, India, and Chairman, WorldTel, based in Chicago, USA -- has been awarded the 2006 Innovation Award for Business Process on Thursday 9th November in London by The Economist for his achievements as a telecommunications inventor, entrepreneur and policymaker.

It was a great pleasure to be present at the time and to be able to personally congratulate Sam for his outstanding achievements for the world's humanity. The Economist's Innovation Award celebrates the global achievements and innovations of individuals who have positively transformed global business.

Sam Pitroda, is an inventor, entrepreneur and policymaker who has been responsible for starting many technology companies and is widely considered to be responsible for India's information, computing and communications revolution. In the mid 1980s, Mr Pitroda was asked by the then Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to help "democratise" access to telecom services across the nation's vast population -- at a time when less than 1% of India's population had access to a telephone.

Mr Pitroda initiated India's telecom revolution which, in turn, was the catalyst for the country's IT revolution. He did this by pioneering the idea of "share phone booths", which are instantly recognisable yellow kiosks that are now available in almost every Indian city, town and village. The key breakthrough was the realisation that access, rather than density, was crucial and therefore it was better to aim for a phone in every community rather than one in every home.

In 2005, Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, appointed Mr Pitroda as Chairman of the newly-constituted National Knowledge Commission, with a mandate to "sharpen India's knowledge edge" by improving intellectual property protection and promoting knowledge applications in agriculture and industry.

Also, Mr Pitroda is Chairman of WorldTel, created by the International Telecommunications Union, and international regulatory body for telecoms. WorldTel consults with governments worldwide on telecom policies as well as developing and investing in telecoms and Internet companies in emerging markets.

The well known virtue of Sam Pitroda is that he has a definite vision to use technology for the benefit and betterment of society. Along with being a pioneer in telecoms, Sam Pitroda has made a strong case for food, clean water, and adequate shelter for the under-privileged section of society. Through his efforts, Sam Pitroda has brought telephones to some of the world's previously isolated regions. In the field of telecoms, Sam's emphasis remains on accessibility rather than density. By providing public access to telephones, Sam Pitroda has revolutionized the state of telecommunications access in India.

Sam Pitroda is also the founding Chairman of a non-profit Foundation for the Revitalization of Local Health Traditions in India. As a result of his pioneering works, Sam Pitroda holds more than 50 patents and has lectured extensively on Telecoms, Technology and Development, in almost all parts of the world.

Background

SAtyanarayan GangarM (Sam) Pitroda, better known as Sam Pitroda was born in Titlagarh, Orissa, India. Sam Pitroda did his schooling at Anand Vallabh Vidyalaya in Gujarat and Masters in Physics and Electronics in Baroda. In 1964, Sam Pitroda went to the US and did his Masters in Electrical Engineering in Chicago. Thereafter he worked at GTE and formed Wescom Switching, Inc. In 1984, Sam Pitroda returned to India and founded the Center for Development of Telematics (CDAC) and later became advisor to the Prime Minister of India on National Technology Missions. Mr Pitroda lives in Chicago, Illinois, with his family.

[ENDS]

We look forward to your further thoughts, observations and views. Thank you.

Best wishes

For and on behalf of DK Matai, Chairman, Asymmetric Threats Contingency Alliance (ATCA)