Rajasthan village gets ready to talk to Obama

Kanpura is one of the 10 villages in Ajmer connected with OFC technology as part of a Central government pilot project facilitated by the Ministry of Information Technology.  

For the sarpanch,26-year-old Jagdish Bairwa,a mechanical engineer,nothing could be more exciting. “I still do not believe this is happening. Diwali happiness this year has more than doubled. It is not only me but the entire village of 4,500 people who are excited since Kanpura will be on the world’s stage,even if it’s just for a short while,” Bairwa said. He added that he has even been given the privilege of speaking about ‘e-gram’ (part of the e-governance initiative) if Obama asks about it. Sunita Rathore,a nurse from the government hospital,said,“Everybody has already bought new clothes for Diwali,but also have another set just for the interaction. This is the biggest thing to happen in Kanpura ever.”

Three cameras will be set up for the interaction. A district official said,“One camera will be for the video-conferencing,another will pan across the village itself and a third will focus on the gram panchayat,which will be decorated with traditional handicrafts and images on it to give Obama a feel of Rajasthan.” The interaction itself will take place in a room,while giant screens have been installed in the village as well.

According to District Commissioner Sharma,a team from the US embassy will stay in Kanpura throughout the session along with a translator. “A team from the US embassy and technological team will be present. They will brief Mr Obama about the technology used here,” Sharma said.