Virtual classrooms, e-mandis for Maharashtra farmers: Devendra Fadnavis

On Wednesday, the state announced an investment of Rs5,000 crore to create a digital platform for services such as education, public health and agriculture in the next three years

Virtual classrooms and an e-mandi for farmers are part of the state’s plan to bridge the gap between the urban and rural populations.

On Wednesday, the state announced an investment of Rs5,000 crore to create a digital platform for services such as education, public health and agriculture in the next three years. The government wants to connect all 40,000 villages through a fibre network with the of providing quality services to people in rural areas.

CM Devendra Fadnavis said the state will work with global IT leaders to bridge the gap between rural and urban India. Under a digital venture Mahanet — on the lines of the Centre’s Bharatnet — the state wants to bring welfare schemes closer to villagers. “All 40,000 villages will be connected through a fibre network. Our electricity company has been using its infrastructure to lay the network. Not just education and health, but our plan will allow farmers to sell their produce directly to the consumers,” Fadnavis said. The CM, through video connectivity, also launched a manufacturing facility of Cisco India in Pune.