The Hindu Business Line : Bridging digital divide — Now, pedal power to run your computers

PEDAL power may soon bring computers to life in electricity-starved villages in India. HCL Infosystems has designed the prototype of an external gadget that can be charged through pedalling and connects to a personal computer to run it under the most difficult of power situations in the country.

The product is currently under testing at HCL's facility in Pondicherry.

"We have experimented with pedal power wherein a car battery can be attached to a special cycle, and people can bike away to charge the battery. This system, attached to a power management system called RP2, can help run a PC. It is still at an experimental stage. The prototype has been developed, but it will take a couple of months to be tested," HCL Infosystems' Chairman and CEO, Mr Ajai Chowdhry, said here.

While the concept is interesting, the success of the product hinges on crucial issues such as the time taken to charge the battery via pedalling, number of hours that PC can be used thereafter, and the price. An HCL spokesperson said that these details would emerge only after the testing phase was completed.

HCL has already announced RP2, which converts a Standard PC into a Rural PC. RP2 is a power management system that switches the computer to a power battery when the power phases out.

The battery power supply lasts six-eight hours and the system comes bundled with HCL range of desktop PCs.

At present, the solutions being offered in this space include harnessing solar energy to run PCs, but with the power unit priced at Rs 16,000 it becomes an expensive proposition.

"There is a need for separate Rural PCs that will take into account factors including power, service ability and local conditions such as heat, cold and dust," Mr Chowdhry said.

Other hardware offerings by HCL in this domain include a high-end PC-TVT — a multifunctional device that combines the functionality of a PC, television and telephone.

"We have not launched it officially yet, but are talking to the Governments of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to run tests in 15-20 villages. The product is priced at Rs 25,000," he said.

Mr Chowdhry said it was too early to gauge the market response to the offerings.

"It is a developmental market, and one does not look at the numbers in the beginning. These are non-standard solutions and traditional models do not apply here."

Other Indian companies are also gearing up to make IT accessible and available to the remotest parts in India. Last year, Wipro Chief, Mr Azim Premji, said the company was developing a "village computer," to be sold at a minimal price with a standby power of two hours.

When contacted, a Wipro spokesperson in Bangalore said the company could not reveal the plans beyond what had already been stated by Mr Premji.

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