Alappuzha ( Kerala) January 2 2014: A group of young Keralites on the internet is digitising the centuries-old linkages of the coastal town of Alappuzha with international trade to add value to the cultural tourism of the region. They are Malayalam Wikipedians, working as part of the world-wide Quick Response (QR) Pedia initiative, have commenced groundwork on an ambitious project where information on about 150 locations of prominence in Alappuzha will be collected and digitised as QR codes into boards to be placed at the locations.

R Krishnakumar reports in Deccan Herald that a visitor can use the QR code reader on his or her smartphone to read the code and through the internet, be directed to the Wikipedia entry – in English and Malayalam – on the location, complete with leading routes and geo-codes. The visitor can also capture the QR code on the board in a photograph and download it on to a computer with an internet connection; the code will lead the user to the Wikipedia entry.

The project took shape during the Wiki Sangamotsavam,  a meet  of Wikipedia users in Kerala and other states, held from December 21 to 23 2013 in Alappuzha. The host city was chosen for the pilot project. Though the QR Pedia project was launched in London in 2011, this is the first time information on an Indian city is being digitised into QR codes.

Locations with historical relevance, old churches, the city’s sea bridge, the canals and boat jetty, popular boat race venues, important pockets in Kuttanad and even the more recent constructions including local administration offices will be covered in the project,” T K Sujith, a Malayalam Wikipedian and general convenor of the Sangamotsavam, told Deccan Herald. (Digitising info for tech-savvy tourists;  December 29 2013)