IGNITE – A Place for Young Minds to Nurture Original Technological Ideas and Innovations

Nail polish which can indicate the presence of drugs or alcohol in soft drinks to prevent molestation, a guiding system for Alzheimer’s patient if they get lost, foot-operated tea making table for differently abled persons and a mechanism for unlocking car during a fire.

Image: Rechuma Manas has proposed an idea for a device to help Alzheimer’s patients.

These are some of the ideas selected for the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam IGNITE 2017 awards which were given to children on Friday in Ahmedabad. This year the award has been to 56 school kids from 16 states who came up with 29 innovative ideas. Overall, 65000 submissions from all over the country were received for the competition. The competition is held annually by the National Innovation Foundation (NIF), an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST). The awards were conferred by former President Mr. Pranab Mukherjee.

Image: Sayan Chaudhry has proposed a Stapler like device for stitching button.

Speaking to India Science Wire, Rechuma Manas, who has given the idea guiding system for Alzheimer patient if they get lost, said “we live in a small place near Guwahati where healthcare facilities are not well developed. I saw my grandmother suffering from Alzheimer’s so I thought there should be some guiding system for patients like her if they get lost”.

Another awardee Sayan Chaudhry from Delhi said he was part of IGNITE workshop last year where he went on a field trip and met a tailor. An interaction with the village tailor-made Sayan realized the problem and from there he thought of a stapler-like device for stitching buttons.

Other award-winning ideas are: smart device for rag picking, expiry date stamping on eggs, wearable indicator to ensure body hydration, pothole detector in flooded conditions, currency note sterilizing machine in ATM, washing machine that can use recycled soap water, detection system in vehicles for speed breakers much in advance and school bag with foldable wheeled legs to distribute load.

IGNITE is a national competition of original technological ideas and innovations by children up to class 12 or those out of school up to the age of 17 years. In this competition, children have to just think of new ideas and innovations. NIF then takes up the best ones and develops prototypes, and ultimately, actual devices and products. The objective is to promote creativity and originality among children. The awards are announced every year on October 15, which the birthday of Dr. Kalam.

The competition is organized by NIF in association with Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Honey Bee Network, and other partners.   A number of other   State   Educational   Boards viz. Board of School   Education   Haryana, Nagaland Board of School Education, Directorate of Higher   Education,  Himachal  Pradesh, West Bengal Board of Secondary   Education, Lok   Shikshan   Sanchalanalaya, Madhya   Pradesh,   Rajiv   Gandhi   Shiksha   Mission, Department of School Education, Government of Chhattisgarh and Mizoram Board of School Education also actively promoted the IGNITE campaign. (India Science Wire)