Project Samudaya
In September 2009, widespread flooding in the southern Indian state of Karnataka left more than 1 million people homeless. The flood destroyed homes, schools, and crops; many people lost everything they owned.
Residents of five hard-hit villages in the district of Raichur, already an arduous two-hour journey from the closest town under good circumstances, were even further isolated by the crisis.
Cisco pledged US$10 million in cash, services, solutions, and equipment to support reconstruction and rehabilitation in these five villages. Project Samudaya, which means “community” in Sanskrit, included:
- Building 3000 homes, 2 schools and 1 primary healthcare center
- Connecting villagers to doctors and specialists 400 kilometers away in Bangalore through Cisco HealthPresence
- Teaching children supplementary courses in English, mathematics, science, and social science through the Cisco Education Enabled Development (CEED) platform
Through Project Samudaya, schoolchildren are able to take remote classes with teachers hundreds of kilometers away.
Cisco partnered with the following organizations and individuals to bring Project Samudaya to life:
- Government officials in the Indian state of Karnataka
- Physicians and specialists in cardiology, internal medicine, gynecology, and pediatrics at RxDx Hospital in Bangalore, who consult with and examine village residents remotely five days a week
- Children’s Lovecastle Trust, a non-governmental organization that delivers remote supplementary courses in English, mathematics, science, and social science to village schoolchildren
- Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, a local telecommunications company that provided broadband Internet access for schools
- Service providers such as systems integrators, property managers, and building material suppliers
- Cisco volunteers, both on the ground and remotely via Cisco TelePresence, who conducted health camps, computer training, and sessions on personal health and hygiene
Cisco built 3000 new homes for villagers in partnership with other organizations.
Cisco contributed various technology solutions for Project Samudaya, including:
- Cisco Education Enabled Development (CEED)
- Cisco HealthPresence
- Cisco TelePresence
- Computers for schools
- Internet connectivity
- Networked applications
Cisco HealthPresence connects rural villagers in Raichur District to doctors and specialists in Bangalore, 400 kilometers away.
Village residents can now see physicians and specialists affordably and without traveling a great distance.
One young patient was diagnosed with a heart problem during a remote consultation, and doctors at RxDx Hospital sponsored her travel to Bangalore for treatment.
Government officials were so impressed with the positive impact of technology on students that they partnered with Cisco to deploy the same model to five additional schools and four hostels run by the Karnataka social welfare department.
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