Google is helping increase women internet users in India

In a country where over 238 million people have access to internet, only 30% of its users are women. To increase the number of female internet users, Google has launched various different projects in India.

According to a report by Economic Times, Google is aiming to bring 50 million women online in India by the end of this year. And in a couple of years, they hope to have covered all the women in the country. With the Indian government wanting every Indian to be connected to the Internet; their efforts will be highly beneficial.

Google India's marketing director Sandeep Menon told Economic Times, “We’re going parallel with the Digital India programme. The government has always been clear that everyone should try the internet; we're doing our small bit.” He added, “When we went to semi-urban or rural areas, the top demand from the net was how do we get ahead in life, what are the skill sets required.”

In November last year, Google created the Help Women Get Online (HWGO) programme. Under the programme, the HWGO website was launched that aims at educating women about the internet. The website offers services like chat, email, search and mobile internet, along with explaining the benefits of using the internet and how it can enrich their lives.

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Last week, Google also launched the Android One programme to get a billion people on smartphones. The venture is tied up with a number of NGOs across the country and will be conducting various pilot programmes in areas like Bhilwada in Rajasthan, where they manage to train 100,000 women in two months.

Till date, over 700,000 women in different parts of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have been trained through the programme.

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Economic Times

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-10-02/news/54560170_1_google-india-hwgo-digital-india