Open source software company Red Hat and IIT Bombay have teamed to support and spread open source programming skills among educational institutions in India. The initiative is being supported by Red Hat's scholarship programme and a new collaborative learning programme.

The Red Hat Scholarships 2006-2007 programme will operate under the e-Kalavya programme set up by the Kanwal Rekhi School of IT and IIT Bombay. This marks the third consecutive year of operation for the Red Hat Scholarships programme in India, which will help thousands of Indian students looking for guidance on software development projects.

Red Hat and IIT Bombay have also set up a collaborative programme which allows students to sign up online for open source projects. They can also seek advice from active open source developers and download software. The two will invest 2m rupees (about $45,000) which will go towards prizes for programme participants.

As open source software becomes more widely used in government applications, India wants to ensure that its IT students and professionals are proficient in open source technology. “Open source will play a huge part in building India's IT infrastructure,” said Javed Tapia, president of Red Hat's Indian operations, “and we have to ensure that the next generation is ready.”

(www.dmeurope.com)