Research

This discussion paper argues that the omnipresence of the digital demands a re-evaluation of legal-institutional response to violence against women. The networked logic of the Internet, and social media platforms that overrun it bank upon virality, effectively rendering ineffectual notions of ‘consent’. The paper attempts to posit a feminist…

Reorienting "data for development"

"Data for development" enjoys high currency in global policy circles. It has come to stand for the idea that developing countries need to acquire the capacity to produce "quality, accessible, timely and reliable disaggregated data" and use the promise of big data to…

….. The second type of education system ties the teacher to the prescribed textbook. She is given no choice in the organization of curriculum, pacing, and the mode of final assessment. Textbooks are prescribed for each subject, and the teacher is expected to elucidate the text, lesson by lesson in the given order. She must ensure that children…

This report presents emerging insights from the research studies being undertaken under the project. Covering 14 countries and a range of domains and sectors, it examines the current trends in platformization, mapping the emerging policy responses and challenges.

Read more from the 'Policy Frameworks for Digital Platforms' research…

This exploratory research study of gender-based cyber violence was led by IT for Change with feminist partners across six sites of study in India, and covered the states of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The research used mixed methods - self administered surveys with college students between the ages of 19-23, key informant interviews with…

The paper, developed for the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, examines, the nature of digital economy in a developing country context, focussing the study partly on Bengaluru, often called the Silicon Valley of the South. It distinguishes digital industry from the earlier software industry and then the Internet industry.The paper defines…

The digital paradigm with its arsenal of technologies promises to solve the most pressing social and economic challenges of our time. Breakthroughs in technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, block chain, and other developments are being heralded as possible solutions for a diverse range of problems. Yet technology-…

Over the last two decades, several private ed-tech companies have rolled out ICT programmes in government schools using the BOOT model and proprietary software. However, the BOOT model bypasses the teacher and fails to demonstrate significant impact on learning processes or outcomes. This article discusses why we need non-profit, free and open…

The Department of IT, Government of Rajasthan is developing a 'Jana Suchana' portal. The aim of this portal is to provide a 'panchayat' centric view to citizens, in which all the support agencies/departments information work/programs for the specified geography would be provided. This helps move the information system paradigm from MIS (…

The gagging of free speech and its direct fallout in the form of self-censorship are slowly but steadily moving from being exceptions to becoming the norm in India. Proof of this downward spiral has been the recent backlash following a tweet from IAS officer Shah Faesal of the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) cadre. The tweet which seemed to…