Bhubaneswar, March 9: In a bid to promote literacy standards in information technology, the Maharashtra Knowledge Corporation Limited (MKCL) has put forward a proposal before the state government to establish a similar body in the state.

Managing director of MKCL Vivek Sawant met chief minister Naveen Patnaik at the state secretariat yesterday to talk about the establishment of an “Orissa Knowledge Corporation Limited”.

Sawant expressed his desire to extend computer literacy programmes under MKCL to students of government, government-aided as well as private schools and colleges in the state.

In his proposal, Sawant has stated that along with computer education, the focus of the probable knowledge corporation would be on grooming young talents and preparing them for competitive examinations.

The managing director said MKCL came into existence in 2001 and by now, nearly 25 lakh students have completed their certificate courses in computer education there.

“The Rajasthan government has also adopted similar computer courses as offered in our corporation. Our aim is to bridge the digital divide by offering essential services for socio-economic transformation. An IT-literate society will be able to enjoy a bigger share of global knowledge resources, business opportunities and global job opportunities,” said Sawant, exuding hope that this venture would immensely benefit talented students in tribal and rural pockets of the state.

During the meeting, chief secretary Bijoy Patnaik, development commissioner R.N. Senapati, and secretaries of other departments such as information technology and industry were also present.

The state government also has plans to invest Rs 1,000 crore for development of the IT sector.

“We will look into the existing IT policy again and bring about necessary reforms. The policy will boost the IT sector in India. A senior delegation of the Orissa Computer Application Centre (OCAC) will also go to Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra to study their IT policies,” said IT secretary Pradip Jena.

The establishment of another IT hub on the outskirts of the city to attract more IT companies to the state is also on the cards.