ICT erased my caste!

In an article titled Technology, the great social leveller, ushering in change, Sam Pitroda (Indian "telecom pioneer") says:

[information and communication] technology opened doors for me. It erased my caste and empowered me to upward mobility.

Do ICTs really hold this kind of power or is it about the way we use them? Are ICTs the answer to greater social equality (that is, less divide) as Pitroda experienced? Or is it a case of ICTs being simply a catalyst for education which in turn may lead to greater social equality? In Pitroda's case it may have made him one of the "technology elites" in India but while ICT offered opportunity, does this mean that ICT itself is really acting as a "social leveller"?

Perhaps it is most useful to look at the use of ICT and society developing as two constantly interacting forces. For example, the more an individual uses ICT, the more one develops ones skills and consequently the more highly-valued are one's skills. Or looking at it from the other angle, the more a society is able to develop an economy and social framework which provides education and access for citizens to use ICTs, the more the citizens will use them. It may be a feedback loop.

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