Google's hiring drive in J&K

Google is flying an 8-member team to Jammu and Kashmir in its attempt to help local talent become part of the surging knowledge economy. "The team led by Ms Mary Himminkool, the head of Google's global entrepreneurship outreach division is landing here on Monday," Usman Ahmad, the head of American charity Mercy Corps's Srinagar operations head said in a statement in Srinagar on Sunday. "The team will have members from California based Google's software development team and new business development as well from Youtube." Mercy Corps is the partner of the event and the two have had similar exercises in the past as well. The team will have a series of interactive sessions with the potential entrepreneurs, students, businessmen, marketers, techies, developers, publishers, content owners, and internet enthusiasts. The team will also meet telecom operators, IT faculties of various institutions and internet service providers to understand the systems in place. "The response was great. We are booked to capacity," Usman said. "There are hundreds of youth who want to be part of the session but we lack the capacity now." All seats were booked on line on a first-come-first-served basis. There is no fee. The event, Google site g-Kashmir says, will equip participants with tips, tricks and tools to win digitally. Apart from providing training on using digital tools to spur technology innovation, business and entrepreneurship, Google experts will advice Youtube enthusiasts on how to create and market content. Participants will be encouraged to present business ideas and seek help in taking them forward. "It is a chance to engage directly with the latest and the greatest from Google," Usman asserts. In J&K, Mercy Corps is engaged in encouraging social entrepreneurship. In the last couple of years, the group has contributed significantly in commercial propagation of best varieties of potatoes and honey and is in the process of managing forward linkages to agri start-ups. Apart from helping in extension of various state-run developmental plans to the field, the NGO was instrumental in helping local techies to become a cohesive institution. Getting Google to Srinagar is part of the American charity's ideas of helping people suffering from natural disasters, conflict or poverty to identify opportunities, promote technology for entrepreneurship and manage the knowledge deficit. With Google, it is already running a similar programme in Palestine to support and boost the IT sector. Usman said the visit to the state is part of the Google's own commitment to this part of the globe.