Vibrant Gujarat Summit: Silicon Valley's Code for India launches Gujarat chapter

WASHINGTON: Silicon Valley-based ' Code for India', a fast growing network of Indian-origin tech professionals, today announced to launch a Gujarat chapter to help build skills development programmes in the state.

"Our mission is to think local and hack global with our volunteer base of tech professionals from top technology companies in Silicon Valley and India," said Karl Mehta, a serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist and CEO of EdCast Inc.

With major success stories of building free software and apps for over 30 NGO's and a community of 1500 tech professionals across its chapters in California, Bangalore, and Hyderabad, the new chapter in Ahmedabad will focus on building technology-based solutions for public services and involve professionals across Ahmedabad, Baroda and Rajkot, a media release said.

The Gujarat chapter of Code for India has been launched on the margins of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit.

It has been launched in partnership with iCREATE, IIM-Ahmedabad, IIT-Gandhinagar and US-India Business Council (USIBC) Education Foundation.

"Our volunteers are from some of the iconic companies in the world, including Google, Facebook, Infosys, Microsoft, Cisco, HGS, etc and they love giving back to the community through their tech-talent," said Mehta, who founded Code For India as a non-profit in Silicon Valley in 2013, when he was working as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow.

"We are excited about partnering with iCREATE, IIM-A, IIT-Gandhinagar and USIBC to launch the new chapter in Ahmedabad and Vibrant Gujarat is the perfect venue," Mehta said.

"This is yet another initiative to deepen the US-India knowledge partnership which fits with our commitment in connecting corporate entities, universities, research institutions and non-profits," said Diane Farrell, president (Acting) USIBC.

Code For India (CFI) has completed several large-scale projects including a real time Ebola tracking mobile application, a voter registration app, a pothole tracking app, and also a garbage tracking app that supports the nationwide Clean India Movement.

The CFI Ahmedabad chapter will also be involved in technology skills development keeping in mind Prime Minister Modi's ambitious Digital India campaign that aims to make 10-lakh people digitally literate by the end of 2015, in addition to facilitating growth in nine identified areas including e-governance, and IT for jobs.

Additionally, the Ahmedabad chapter promises to reach out not just to local residents, but also to the tech communities of Baroda and Rajkot, the media release added.