ITU World Telecommunication and Information Society Award

Meet the laureates Shutterstock ce of Adviser to PM/ fi Of

Sam Pitroda Adviser to the Prime Minister Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations

Sam Pitroda is an internationally also the founder and fi rst Chairman several initiatives focused on open respected development thinker, of India´s Telecom Commission. In government, democratizing infor- policy-maker, telecom inventor and these roles, he helped revolution- mation and inclusive growth. He entrepreneur who has spent over ize India’s development policies and also chairs the country’s National four decades in ICT and related hu- philosophies with a focus on access Innovation Council, the Smart Grid man and national developments to technology as the key to social Task Force set up under the aegis initiatives. change. of the Ministry of Power and the Credited with having laid the Mr Pitroda was Chairman Expert Committee on the use of ICT foundation of India´s telecommu- of India´s National Knowledge in Railways. He has also been ap- nications revolution in the 1980s, Commission (2005–2009), an advi- pointed a founding Commissioner Mr Pitroda has been a leading cam- sory body to the Prime Minister of of the Broadband Commission paigner to help bridge the global India, set up to provide a blueprint for Digital Development, estab- digital divide. for reform of the knowledge-relat- lished by ITU and UNESCO with During his tenure as Adviser to ed institutions and infrastructure in the backing of the Prime Minister in the the country. Secretary-General. 1980s Mr Pitroda headed six tech- In his current role as Adviser He holds close to 100 world- nology missions related to telecom- to the on wide patents and has published and munications, water, literacy, immu- Public Information Infrastructure lectured widely in the , nization, dairy and oil seeds. He was and Innovations, he is undertaking Europe, Latin America and Asia.

ITU News  4 | 2011  May 2011 7