Young innovators display work at President’s house
NEWDELHI: Counting words while writing his exams would always take the bulk of nine-year-old Muzafar Ahmad Khan’s time till an idea struck him. This resident of Gurez in Bandipora district of Jammu and Kashmir thought why can’t a pen be developed that can count the words to save time.
Based on his idea, the National Innovation Foundation, an autonomous body under the Department of Science and Technology developed such a pen. “It’s a pen with a casing attached at its rear end. A casing for electronics is made and printed on a 3D printer. Once someone writes, it shows the word count that can be displayed on a small LCD monitor. It can also be displayed on one’s mobile phone through a message,” said Vyoma Jaiswal, innovation fellow at NIF, who is part of the engineering team that developed the pen.
The prototype of the pen is one of the exhibits on display at the ongoing Festival of Innovation and Entrepreneurship organised by the Rashtrapati Bhavan in association with the Department of Science and Technology and the National Innovation Council.
Inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday, the exhibition has displays by young innovators from across the country. All exhibits showcases how a simple idea can transform lives.
Take for example Aparna Chandrasekhar, a class four student of PS Senior Secondary school in Chennai who came up with an idea to develop a watch with in-built chilli spray. It automatically sprays the ingredients on the person who may be bullying the wearer.
“In such a situation generally the heartbeat and blood circulation increases, which triggers the sensor in the watch to release the spray,” she said.
The festival, which concludes on March 23, rewards innovations and provides a platform for innovators for building linkages with potential stakeholders whose support can improve their prospects in coming years to develop their ideas into implementable projects for the larger social good. The exhibition will remain open for public between 12 noon and 5 pm from March 20 to 23. Visitors can come through Gate number 35 of Rashtrapati Bhavan (near North Avenue).