Page1    Page171                                                                        Page173  Page177

9.0 OWNERSHIP:

The Knowledge Network should be owned by the SPV consisting of major stakeholders.

Government ownership is not desirable, despite the fact that substantial funding will be from the

government because:

·

It is the government's policy to withdraw from direct operations and maintenance

activities in the ICT sector.

·

The type of trained manpower needed, though not large, is in great demand in the market,

and therefore will require special remuneration and incentives.

10.0 SPECIAL GROUP:

We recommend setting up a special working group of experts to finalize specifications,

implementation plans, cost estimates, network plans as well as to carry out the actual task of

procurement and commissioning of the network. This group will also establish the SPV needed

for running the network on a day to day basis.

We firmly believe that a National Knowledge Network interconnecting our knowledge

institutions and infrastructure with access speeds of 100 Mbps and more will give a major push to

collaborations and sharing, needed to enhance the quality of our education, research and

applications and at the same time will empower our people to be competitive in the global

economy. We hope therefore that this proposal will be considered favorably and incorporated in

the XIth plan.

Warm personal regards,

Sam Pitroda

Chairman,

172