On the first Saturday of every month, the Secretariat employees will undergo a special training in information and communication technologies (ICT), under a ‘Tech Saturday, 2011’ campaign, to develop a deeper interest in using IT in their routine work and get acquainted with the latest technology gadgets and software.

The software and training is being provided by InOpen Technologies, which is an IIT Bombay based educational startup which initiated the campaign. The special campaign is expected to cover government employees from various departments in the state.

Rajesh Agarwal, IT secretary, showed his keen interest in having four centres all over Maharashtra, and wished to make available space for such training, InOpen Technologies said in a formal statement.

During this recent campaign, according to InOpen, it was observed that the employees of Mantralaya had different acquaintance level in respect to IT. “There were a few people who were comfortable with word processor, but knew little about spreadsheet whereas a few who have been using Intranet seamlessly, but had no exposure to Internet searching and browsing,” the statement said.  

Rupesh Kumar Shah, chief executive officer and founder of InOpen Technologies said, “The programme, based on a thorough research done at IIT Bombay under the guidance of a professor, gives a strong quality assurance. It is an up-to-date national curriculum for computer science which is revised from time to time. The structure of the programme is such that it adds the fun while learning element. The content is in a story format.”

InOpen Technologies is also planning to conduct short workshops on selected topics as well as computer training as weekend classes for the Mantralaya employees.