By our Infotech Correspondent AHMEDABAD: Internet kiosks in every nook and corner, just like STD PCO booths, seemed a distant dream just a couple of years back. However, with the Gujarat State Finance Corporation putting its weight behind the information technology sector in the state, this dream may soon fructify, Not only will these kiosks have internet access, they will also offer videoconferencing facilities.
 The corporation has launched a scheme providing offering soft loans to STD PCOs to procure Pentium III computers with internet connection and a fibre -optic lines on a 64 KBPS bandwidth.
  "STD PCOs with monthly incomes of between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000 can avail of loans up to Rs 92,000," says GSFC managing director SK Nanda.
  "Of this, Rs 80,000 will be advances towards setting up the infrastructure facility, including computer hardware, the fibre optic line and video-conferencing facility."

Nanda expects these kiosks to become information nodes peppering the state to facilitate a wide range of activities.
 "A farmer living in a remote village earlier had to come at least as far as the taluka office or a bigger city to obtain loans for agricultural and animal husbandry activities. With the kiosks coming up, the same farmer will be able to download the form at a nearby town," Nanda said.
 "We also expect to provide online payment for activities like government training programmes." He believes this will cut through at least five to six days worth of red-tape saving the agriculturist precious time.
 "He can also surf the Netand garner trade information, such as prices in various markets while checking out the most attractive firm to buy his fertiliser from.
 Although the stress is on promoting the kiosks in rural areas, the first 15 applicatons have come from urban areas of Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Nadiad and Anand.

"There is no point in being over-enthusiastic," Nanda analyses."We have to remain practical and see the initial response before disseminating information to rural areas."
  Explaining why GSFC decided to fund the project, Nanda says banks would obviously have demanded collateral before processing loan applications, a process which would eliminate small-time operators in the very first go.
  "All we need, on the other hand, is that the booth makes a healthy monthly income. This is our contribution towards the growth of the infotech sector in the state.
"Earlier, speaking to The Times of India, the state IT secretary had said," Even if we are able to transmit still pictures during teleconferencing, it would make a world of difference to a mother whose child is studying abroad, apart from helping business activity".