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Aim of the project:
"Utkarsh is a mission to bring the power of
computers to the Gujarati speaking populace." |
Utkarsh enables Gujarati users to use computers in their own
language. As computers become part of everyday life, the biggest
bottleneck to their widespread use is the unavailability of Indian
language software. The benefits of the information technology will
reach an average user only when the computing interface is in local
language.
Utkarsh will aid in furthering the growth of computers among the
non-English speaking Gujarati people thereby reducing the digital
divide. Utkarsh also intends to bring the Gujarati culture into the
digital realm and ensure that Gujarati language does not face the
danger of extinction.
Features of Utkarsh:
Utkarsh
is a complete operating system - not just application software. Utkarsh
OS comes powered with the following features and applications:
- Easy to use, graphical user interface
- Menus, messages and applications in Gujarati
- Does not disturb your existing operating system, use Utkarsh directly from the CD
- Write in Gujarati using your existing keyboard
- Zero risk of viruses and worms
- Write in any language - Gujarati or English
- More than 20 exciting games
- Create, Print and Share files
- Write documents, make presentations, do calculations
- Tools for drawing and graphics applications to enhance your creativity
- Work on the Internet and take a dive in the sea of information
- Exchange emails with relatives in any corner of the world
- Manage your meetings and schedules
- Configure your network and printer easily
- Configure the look and feel of the operating system
- Work with various files - images, PDF, Doc, PPT, XLS, MP3, Video etc.
- And many more...
Why Utkarsh?
In India only 10% of
people know English, out of which, very few have knowledge of
computers. As a result, a very large portion of Indians face difficulty
in using and understanding the power of computers. Hence there is
prevalence of a unique paradox:
Technology is cheap, but "Information Poverty" still exists amongst a large section of people.
It is ironical that people remain ignorant about the far reaching power
of computers only because of the lack of knowledge of English language.
Hence, to spread the benefits of computers and information technology
to wider sections of people, localization plays an very pivotal role.
Utkarsh is an effort in this direction.
When cable TV was introduced in India, it was in English. But only 5%
people knew English and hence the growth rate of cable TV was very
slow. After the launch of regional language cable channels, the cable
TV industry has seen phenomenal growth rates. Today, every regional
language has at least 2 cable channels. This is the power of language.
Utkarsh is based on freedom based software:
Utkarsh's roots are in open source software. It is based on GNU/Linux.
Linux is a free, i.e. "Swatantra" operating system. "Free" means
not free of cost but it means freedom to run, copy, distribute, modify,
study and implement the operating system. The main intention behind
using Linux is to increase the reach of computers across all sections
of the society. The power of computers should not be available only to
the elite.
Our Team
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Utkarsh team works under the visionary leadership of Ashok Karania, CEO of Magnet Group and Nirav Mehta, Chairman of Magnet Group. Kartik Mistry (Project In-charge), Meena Chheda, Jagruti Valani, Vishal Kothari and Ashok Suthar
make up the vibrant Utkarsh team. The founding team included Ankit
Patel, Ankur Patel, Bhavin Shah, Atit Patel, Sweta Kothari, Khushbu
Shah and Viren Shah. |
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