12, Jan 2024
Major UPI Apps Enabled to Receive Remittances from Singapore via UPI-PayNow Linkage
Bangalore, 12 January 2024: The cross-border linkage between Unified Payments Interface (UPI) & PayNow is enabling Indians to receive instant, secure, and cost-effective remittances from Singapore-based Indian diaspora directly into their bank accounts. This facility can be accessed by users of BHIM, PhonePe, and Paytm apps. Additionally, banks such as Axis Bank, DBS Bank India, ICICI Bank, Indian Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, and State Bank of India provide this functionality through their respective apps.
More Third-Party Application Providers (TPAPs) and bank apps such as Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank, Central Bank of India, Federal Bank, HDFC Bank, IDFC First Bank, IndusInd Bank, Karur Vysya Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Punjab National Bank, South Indian Bank, and UCO Bank are expected to be added to the linkage soon. This expansion will broaden the range of choices offered to customers.
Key benefits of receiving funds via UPI-PayNow:
- Instant: Funds are transferred in real-time, reaching the recipient’s bank account within seconds.
- Secure: The linkage utilizes robust security protocols to ensure safe and reliable transactions.
- Cost-effective: Transaction fees are competitive, making the service ideal for small and frequent remittances.
- Convenient: The facility is available 24/7, 365 days a year
This interoperability milestone is the result of close collaboration between the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The increasing adoption of UPI in cross-border transactions not only amplifies financial inclusion and convenience but also plays a pivotal role in fostering the overall growth of India’s dynamic digital payment ecosystem.
- 0
- By Rabindra
11, Jan 2024
Foundation for Advancing Science and Technology (FAST) announces Fellows for the India Science Book Fellowship
11 January 2024, New Delhi: The Foundation for Advancing Science and Technology (FAST India) is delighted to announce the awardees of the prestigious India Science Book Fellowship. This year, three proposals have been selected for full fellowship – with recipients being recognised as India Science Book Fellows – and two proposals for partial fellowship.
Popular science books play an important role in enhancing public understanding and appreciation of science by conveying complex scientific concepts in simpler, more engaging ways. The India Science Book Fellowship was launched with the aim of introducing science into the public imagination. It has been a resounding success, drawing in a diverse pool of talented writers from across the country. This year’s fellowship saw an overwhelming response with over 780 registrations and over 350 abstracts submitted by applicants from IITs, IISc, Ashoka University, JNU, CSIR institutions, and many more. The applications also saw immense diversity in terms of applicants – scientists, journalists, science communicators, health professionals, and PhD students – showcasing the depth of scientific inquiry and literary talent in India.
Ashish Dhawan, Co-Founder, FAST India said, “There is enormous potential to expand the discourse around science in the public domain and mainstream public science books to engage and inspire. This innovative initiative by FAST-India encourages Indian scientists, journalists, writers, and science enthusiasts to share their unique stories and expertise with the world.”
The Fellows, chosen after a rigorous evaluation process, are set to contribute significantly to the field of science literature. Their works promise to bring forth unique perspectives and narratives, highlighting the richness and diversity of Indian science and research. They have been awarded financial grants of Rupees Ten Lakhs each.
India Science Book Fellows for this year are:
Ganesh Bagler, Associate Professor, IIIT Delhi – Making Food Computable: The Data-driven Science of Food Sarthak Parikh, Assistant Professor, IIT Delhi, & Kush Dhebar, Consultant, Department of Archaeology and Museums, Haryana – Do and Die: A Game of Quantum Cricket (Quantum Computing Explained through Cricket) Upasana Sarraju, Communications Lead at Fish Welfare Initiative (an animal welfare NGO) – Nuances in Nonsense: Quirky Science Chronicles from India and the World
Partial fellowship recipients this year are:
- Laxmi Murthy, Journalist, Hri Institute of Southasian Research and Exchange – When Feminists Met Science: A Chronicle of the Women’s Health Movement in India
- Avinandan Mukherjee, Freelance science writer, The MS University of Baroda, Vadodara – Stone Tools: A Brief History
Varun Aggarwal, Co-Founder, FAST India said, “Stephen Hawking’s books got scientists and science into the public imagination big time… We need to do the same for Indian science and scientists. Indian scientists have a unique story to tell not only to Indians but to the world. The time is NOW.”
In addition to the grant, the recipients will also benefit from feedback provided by top-tier professionals, including publishers, renowned science writers, and bestselling authors, as well as a focus group comprising members of the books’ intended audience. They will also receive support in publishing the manuscript from a publishing house and the opportunity to participate in book launch events as part of promotions to improve their visibility.
The foundation will also provide mentoring, publishing, and small grant support to 19 longlisted candidates.
This fellowship programme not only recognises their exceptional talent but also provides them with the platform and resources to share their insights and knowledge with a wider audience. The Foundation is committed to supporting these authors through their journey, ensuring that their works reach eager readers across the country and beyond. This initiative is a significant step towards enriching the landscape of science literature in India and promoting indigenous authors in the field of science communication.
The eminent panel of jury comprises renowned authors Angela Saini, Anil Seth, Jahnavi Phalkey, Pranay Lal, and Tarun Khanna, whose contributions have been truly momentous to the success of the programme. Cactus Communications is a partner and a funder for one of the selected Fellows.
11, Jan 2024
AI-based Admissions Startup Ambitio raises pre-seed round from First Cheque & Others
New Delhi, January 11, 2024: The AI-based global admissions startup, Ambitio, which helps students in pursuing higher education abroad, on Tuesday announced its pre-seed round of Rs 1.55 crore. The funding comes from investors, including First Cheque, a couple of soonicorn founders, and angel investors from the US and India.
Founded by IIT BHU graduates Dirghayu Kaushik, Vikrant Shivalik & Vaibhav Tyagi, Ambitio is building India’s first AI admissions platform, to help applicants secure admissions in top global universities.
![L-R [Vikrant Shivalik, Dirghayu Kaushik]](https://mediaexpress24.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/L-R-Vikrant-Shivalik-Dirghayu-Kaushik-1.jpg)
Ambitio AI Copilot enables applicants to identify ideal courses and craft stellar essays & SOPs. With access to a database of over 2 million admits, they are developing a low-touch approach to build a comprehensive global admissions platform.
“Our goal is to serve as intelligent digital advisors to students throughout their admissions journey. For years, this information was scattered all over the place and insights were confined to a handful of education counsellors. With the decentralization of information and emergence of LLMs, all this knowledge can now be intelligently used to give personalized admission advice” stated Dirghayu Kaushik, Co-founder and CEO at Ambitio.
Vikrant Shivalik, Co-founder and COO at Ambitio, said, “Our unique AI+Mentor approach coupled with our in-house admission experts, ensures that our applicants get accepted into their dream schools by fostering strong profile building and crafting stellar applications”
Prateek Agarwal, Investments Lead at First Cheque, said, “We believe Ambitio is well positioned to leverage Gen-AI capabilities. Their product-led approach presents a great opportunity to develop a global admissions product”.
11, Jan 2024
Dedication of 17 Ag&p Pratham’s Cng Stations to Serve the People of Hassan
Hassan, 11th January 2024: Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Shri Hardeep Singh Puri dedicated 17 AG&P Pratham’s CNG stations in Hassan, Chikkamagaluru, and Kodagu Geographical Area to the people today, in the presence of Shri Abhilesh Gupta – Managing Director and CEO, AG&P Pratham and Shri Takeshi Shinohara – Senior General Manager, Osaka Gas, Japan, along with other dignitaries from AG&P Pratham, Osaka Gas and HPCL. In the state of Karnataka, AG&P Pratham operates in 15 districts catering to 55% of the geographical area.
Speaking at the Inauguration ceremony of AG&P Pratham’s CNG station, Mr. Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas appreciated AG&P Pratham’s efforts in building natural gas-powered infrastructure in the country. The Minister welcomed the Japanese investment in Indian CGD sector and sought more Japanese investment in development of gas infrastructure in India. He talked about the technological advancement in the gas sector in Japan and expressed his hope that the collaboration with AG&P Pratham would ensure bringing Japanese technology into Indian operations. He said that this is testament of the commitment of the Government under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to provide people with convenient and environment-friendly energy options. He also said that the availability of CNG and PNG in the region opens a new chapter in the lives of the community and further said that very soon every household in Hassan will have PNG connects. He also talked about Governments’ commitment to phased increase in bio gas blending on CNG and PNG as per recent policy initiatives. He further said that Shri Narendra Modi led Government is working on increasing FDI and improve international collaborations and in developing India as an energy hub.
Shri Abhilesh Gupta, Managing Director and CEO, AG&P Pratham, informed that AG&P Pratham has already invested around 4000 Crores in its GAs and further commitment of another 15000 Crores in the next 6-7 years. He said that we are ready to provide PNG connections to about 2 lakh household in the next few months. Under the visionary leadership of the Hon’ble Prime Minister and the able guidance of the Hon’ble Minister the Government has realised the dream of One Nation One Grid and which ensure gas is delivered far-flung areas with optimised logistics costs and removing tax inefficiencies. Our network spans 3400 kms of MDPE pipelines, 900 kms of steel pipelines and 300 CNG Stations. He thanked Dr. Anil Kumar Jain, Chairman, PNGRB for the passion with which PNGRB has been driving creation of CGD infrastructure across the country.
Shri Takeshi Shinohara from Osaka Gas expressed sincere gratitude to the visionary
10, Jan 2024
Nishith Desai Associates develops AI ChatBot for its lawyers, NaiDA
Mumbai, 10th January, 2024 – Nishith Desai Associates (“NDA”), a globally recognized law firm celebrated for its continuous innovation at the intersection of law and technology, is pleased to announce the launch of NaiDA, an in-house developed AI ChatBot exclusively designed for our lawyers. NaiDA has been meticulously built with precision and sophistication, with the understanding that it will not be used without customisation for client projects. Built on the advanced GPT-4 model from OpenAI and hosted on AWS servers, NaiDA is designed to empower our lawyers with intelligent insights in their daily workflows.
The current dataset comprises multiple cross-industry research papers, M&A labs, hotlines, podcasts, videos, and other content developed by the firm over the years. The AI ChatBot enables legal research and content integration, among other possibilities yet to be explored. As a law firm, we thrive on our objective to deliver the highest quality of work in the shortest possible time. We aspire to grow along with our clients while thinking ahead to the future. We celebrate opportunities to walk the extra mile, with a collective endeavour to conceive creative solutions for the issues that are likely to arise in the future.
Nishith Desai, Founder, Nishith Desai Associates said “With the introduction of NaiDA, we are reinforcing our 100% commitment to legal innovation. Over the years, technology has played a catalyst role in driving socio-economic growth. And now, it is time for the legal industry to harness its full potential. However, we must note that AI is not there to replace lawyers but to elevate our practice. Congratulations to our entire legal engineers’ team for their remarkable efforts in developing NaiDA.”
Milind Mundanka, Chief Technology Officer, Nishith Desai Associates added “We’ve witnessed an overwhelming wave of enthusiasm from both our lawyers and client’s side regarding Chat-GPT. The excitement is understandable – since it’s a tool that not only streamlines processes but, more importantly, saves time, an invaluable asset in today’s fast-paced environment. The time efficiency is precisely what we aim to provide our stakeholders. Shortly, we plan to integrate additional external resources and new data sources. With NaiDA, we are dedicated to staying at the forefront of modern technological shifts and providing our stakeholders with cutting-edge solutions.”
The launch is accompanied by extensive guidance and training for our lawyers and staff, emphasising the responsible and ethical use of AI in legal practice. We are confident that NaiDA will not only help our lawyers but also contribute to the broader conversation on responsible AI adoption in the legal profession.
10, Jan 2024
Zendesk signs definitive agreement to acquire Klaus
Bangalore– January 10, 2024 – Zendesk today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Klaus, the industry leading AI-powered quality management platform. AI is driving a rapid increase in customer interactions and radically transforming the world of customer service. Customer service teams are being asked to increase their ROI by managing a rising volume of interactions while providing quality service, and increasing their organization’s efficiency in the process. With Klaus, Zendesk customers will be able to deliver consistent, high quality service across every channel and across both human and digital agents (bots) – all while unlocking the power of everyday customer interactions to increase loyalty.
“As AI drives up the speed and frequency of customer engagement, only AI-powered quality assurance (QA) can keep up as companies work to identify and fix gaps in their customer service operations,” said Adrian McDermott, chief technology officer, Zendesk. “The combination of Zendesk AI and Klaus’ capabilities will help businesses navigate greater complexity and volume and ensure both digital and human agents deliver highly personal and empathetic service.”
”Zendesk and Klaus share a vision of AI-led, personalized CX with businesses fully anticipating and acting on their customers’ needs,” said Martin Kõiva, CEO and founder, Klaus. “QA software plays a critical role in this, ensuring consistency, assessing both human and digital agent performance and providing actionable insights for strategic planning. As part of Zendesk, we will continue to build and deliver these crucial capabilities, but now at an even greater scale.”
With digital agents resolving more service inquiries without human interaction, having a QA solution that analyzes both human and digital agent performance is crucial to maintaining quality control and providing best-in-class customer service. While most QA software is capable of only scoring 1 to 2 percent of interactions and cannot recognize systemic trends, Klaus’ AI scores 100 percent of customer support interactions. It pinpoints conversations with positive or negative sentiment, identifies outliers, churn risk, escalations and follow-ups across all conversations – even those done by outsourced teams. Klaus spots knowledge gaps and coaching opportunities that can be used to improve agent performance and productivity, all of which results in higher customer satisfaction.
WEM is a critical capability for today’s customer service leaders. The acquisition of Klaus will be the latest addition to the company’s existing workforce engagement management (WEM) solutions which includes Tymeshift, a modern workforce management tool built exclusively for Zendesk. The company acquired Tymeshift in June 2023. The acquisition of Klaus is anticipated to close in the first quarter of 2024 upon receipt of required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
9, Jan 2024
apna.co Celebrates Job Seekers with #ApnaThankYou Campaign
National, 09 January 2024: This New Year, apna.co, India’s leading jobs and networking platform, launched a game-changing campaign titled #ApnaThankYou as a heartfelt tribute to the remarkable job seekers whose careers found new horizons on this groundbreaking platform. The campaign used state-of-the-art CGI technology to unveil awe-inspiring Magic Portals hovering above India’s iconic landmarks. From the majestic India Gate to the cultural wonders of Charminar, the digital film weaved magic, spotlighting not just apna.co’s profound impact but also narrating compelling success stories.
The data unveiled is as inspiring as the campaign itself. Delhi witnessed an unprecedented 1.9 crore job applications, while Chennai made history with equal gender representation in applications. Bengaluru saw a staggering 40 Lakh women applicants, Hyderabad boasted 31 lakh fresher applications, and Mumbai shone with 40 lakh graduate applications in 2023 alone. #ApnaThankYou heralds a fresh chapter in job-seeking narratives as it took the digital world by storm while unveiling a mesmerising campaign on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Sharing insights about the initiative Mr. Nirmit Parikh, Founder and CEO, apna.co said, “Since the inception of apna.co, our mission has centred on providing a singular platform for job seekers to not only discover career opportunities but also foster valuable professional connections. The essence of the #ApnaThankYou campaign encapsulates the celebration of diverse narratives that have unfolded within our platform’s vibrant ecosystem. We extend our heartfelt appreciation to each user who has placed their trust in apna.co’s journey.”
Notably, the campaign gained widespread acclaim through various social media handles on Instagram, reaching diverse audiences. Through this, apna.co aims to create a relatable and supportive environment for individuals navigating the complexities of the job market. apna.co is ensuring that everyone, irrespective of their journey, feels empowered and supported in their pursuit of rewarding career opportunities.
8, Jan 2024
Gopalan Aerospace Delivers Cutting-Edge Transporters for Indian Defence
Bangalore, India –08th January 2024: Gopalan Aerospace, a leading innovator in the Indian aerospace industry, marked a significant milestone with the dispatch of a custom-built, 4-axle, hydraulic suspension, steerable ground vehicle capable of carrying a hefty 54-ton payload to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). This ambitious project, completed within a remarkable 8 months, represents a pivotal step towards India’s self-reliance in critical defence technology.
The “Motor Transporter” project stands as a testament to Gopalan Aerospace’s ingenuity and commitment. These highly sophisticated vehicles, specifically designed for defence applications, offer unparalleled robustness and manoeuvrability. Their robust trailer design, equipped with hydraulic suspension and steerable wheels in both automatic and manual modes, allows them to navigate even the most challenging terrains with ease. Furthermore, the transporters boast fireproof canopies for enhanced safety and wire rope isolators to protect the payload from transportation shocks. Their design adheres to stringent STEC standards, ensuring the highest levels of quality and reliability.
The successful completion of the “Motor Transporter” project was celebrated with a flag-off ceremony attended by Mr. Sharath Kumar Bache Gowda, MLA, Hoskote, and Dr. Prabhakar. The event served as a powerful showcase of Gopalan Aerospace’s capabilities and an ode to the team’s dedication.
Dr. C Prabhakar, Director of Gopalan Aerospace said, “This project exemplifies Gopalan Aerospace’s dedication to exceeding expectations and pushing the boundaries of engineering excellence. We are proud to partner with DRDO in fulfilling our vision of making India self-reliant in critical defence technology. This transporter represents the culmination of our expertise and showcases our ability to deliver complex and high-performance systems on time and within budget.”
Gopalan Aerospace, renowned for its expertise in precision machining, sheet metal fabrication, and advanced assembly techniques, boasts a proven track record in delivering cutting-edge solutions for the Indian defence sector. The company holds leadership positions in areas like active and passive radars, aerial targets, and drones, collaborating with prestigious partners like Israel IAI, Rafale, DRDO, and the Indian armed forces.
This landmark achievement marks a significant step forward in India’s quest for self-reliance in defence technology. Gopalan Aerospace, through its relentless innovation and unwavering commitment, continues to play a pivotal role in shaping a future where India stands tall as a technologically empowered nation.
8, Jan 2024
Swecha AI Chandamama Kathalu
Hyderabad, 8th January 20204: Swecha released “AI Chandamama Kathalu”, the first-of-its-kind AI built for storytelling. Shobu Yarlagadda, Founder, Arka media works; graced the event as the chief guest and launched it to the public. Guest of Honor Ram Miriyala, Singer, composer; and Prof Gaurav Raina, IITM, Former Chairman, MPFI; Kiran Chandra, Founder, Swecha; Chaitanya Chokkareddy, Co-Founder & CTO, Ozonetel; Ramadevi Lanka, Director, Emerging Tech, Govt of Telangana; Prof K S Rajan, Registrar, IIITH; Kiran Kumar, Intel fellow & GM; Sasikant Vallepalli, Director, Tana Foundation; & Nagarjun Malladi, Vice President, Tech Mahindra; was present on the occasion.
The goal is to bring back the moral and ethical values embedded in “Chandamama Kathalu” using a new and creative AI approach. Thousands took part in this initiative, to contribute their time and effort, charting a path towards Telugu AI.
We are seeing the growth of AI, especially, that of Large Language Models (LLMs), such as, ChatGPT. These LLMs are trained on large amount (trillions of words) of raw text, typically, scraped from web. Consequently, they end up requiring immense amount of compute power and special hardware (GPUs) to learn patterns, so that they can produce coherent text. For instance, It takes nearly 6 crore rupees (700,000 dollars), just to run ChatGPT daily.
For AI to be accessible to every farmer, every rural teacher and every shopkeeper, AI should be developed for Indian Languages. Pondering on the this problem of creating AI in Indian Languages, Chaitanya (CPO & Co-Founder, Ozonetel), Kiran Chandra (Founder, Swecha) and Professor Gaurav Raina (Professor IIT Madras), got together in a breakfast conversation, and formulated an idea to build an AI solution for stories. To build a story oriented AI language model, we don’t need a large language model, which is very resource intensive; a small language model (SLM) should be adequate.
To develop an AI vision for India, we do not need a one-size-fits-all approach, rather, we need to build AI for specific needs of India, and, in this case, the model has to be built with storytelling in mind. For this model, Chandamama Kathalu was chosen as the source for data, these short stories, which are beloved by all Telugu speaking people are the perfect choice, as they instilled moral values for generations and developing an AI version of Chandamama would bring back these stories in a new form.
The stories available in scanned PDFs had to be digitised first. Normally, this would have taken months, but, though the contributions of Swecha community, in a little over 4 hours, more than 10,000 students and faculty across 30 engineering colleges helped proofread the digitally scanned and converted Telugu text from the old magazines. A total of 40,000 stories have been converted during this sprint. This dataset has been released for the public and is available on the internet for anyone to download and / or improve upon. This part of the effort was led by Kiran Chandra, who looked back at his earlier efforts – “This whole effort reminds me of the effort we put 20 years ago in creating the first Telugu Operating System, creating the font and the glossary. This seems a logical step in our journey towards democratizing technology and we shall continue to take up more work in this space.”
Once the data was collected, the next step was to train the AI model on these stories, so that it can then create new stories. Chaitanya led this effort, which required technology expertise and no dearth of burning midnight oil. After close to a month of intense effort, the project is now launched to the public. Chaitanya stresses that ‘this is only the beginning. The team is working on not just improving this, but also has ambitious plans for Telugu AI models.” Further elaborating on the importance of this effort, Chaitanya said “The success of the Chandamama Kathalu datathon proved that a volunteer driven effort for creating high quality datasets is possible.” These datasets, being open, can now ignite research in universities and startups. So we have a flywheel for AI for India. Swecha, Professor Gaurav Raina, from IIT Madras, and companies like Ozonetel/Alpes are showing that such a flywheel is possible. The core focus is to create a truly open AI ecosystem that serves the needs of India.
Stories of India, in Indian languages, for all Indians As the next step, Professor Gaurav Raina encouraged us to build this into something far bigger; into an Indian AI based language model, which can cater for stories of India, across all Indian languages.
Professor Gaurav Raina, commenting on the opportunity, said “Storytelling is central to our beliefs, and our values, and while it’s great to start with Telugu, the team has to help tell the stories across all Indian languages.”
Further, Professor Gaurav Raina adds, “I am really excited to work towards an Indian, storytelling AI based language framework. Let’s hope that the joy of chandamama stories also eventually finds an international audience.”
Our partnership with Professor Gaurav Raina will help us engage with researchers and students at IIT Madras to take this idea to a national level.
Y Kiran Chandra, Founder, Swecha Telangana.
8, Jan 2024
Vishwakarma Awards 2023 Honours Outstanding Student Innovations
Delhi, 8th January 2024: The prestigious Vishwakarma Awards, organised by Maker Bhavan Foundation and co-sponsored by WIN Foundation, Godrej Industries, Addverb, and Alkyl Amines, celebrated a grand culmination at eDC IIT Delhi, the official host for 2023. It recognised exceptional student innovations in the fields of water and sanitation, clean technology, and smart mobility. These awards, named after Vishwakarma, the god of architecture and engineering, aim to inspire and reward students for their contributions to engineering and technology that address real-world challenges.
The Vishwakarma Awards, an annual event, focus on encouraging students from Indian STEM colleges to develop scalable solutions that contribute to solving critical issues and bolster India’s economy. This year’s theme is centered on water and sanitation, clean technology, and smart mobility.
Hemant Kanakia, Chairman of Maker Bhavan Foundation and inventor and senior entrepreneur, said, “From my perspective, championing hands-on learning is crucial for students to evolve into effective problem solvers, I celebrate initiatives like the Vishwakarma Awards that recognise the inherent value of practical skills and hardware-building capabilities. The awards offer participants the guidance and mentorship of experts, guaranteeing that their solutions are not just imaginative ideas but well-informed and effective responses to pressing problems.”
Meher Pudumjee, Chairperson, Thermax India Ltd, said “I am impressed by the quality and diversity of the solutions that the students have developed under the themes of water and sanitation, clean technology, and smart mobility. These are some of the most critical challenges that our country and the world face today, and I commend Maker Bhavan Foundation for choosing them as focus areas for this year’s Vishwakarma Awards.”
Three Distinct Tracks
Water and Sanitation: Innovations addressing water scarcity, quality, access, and management, as well as sanitation and hygiene issues, were showcased. Sub-topics include purification of water, desalination, water conservation, low carbon footprint solutions, and measuring instrumentation.
Paresh Vora, Director of India Operations, WIN Foundation, said, “WIN Foundation is proud to champion the Water & Sanitation track at the Vishwakarma Awards. Access to clean water and sanitation is fundamental to human well-being and sustainable development and also critical for all living systems. The Vishwakarma platform provides enables young innovators to develop novel solutions to tackle these critical challenges and present these to members from industry, investment community, and others in startup ecosystem”
Wheels India Niswarth Foundation (WIN) is a non-profit US 501 c3 organisation, supporting innovations for sustainable social impact on (i) water and sanitation and (ii) maternal and child health.
Clean Technology: Student teams presented solutions focusing on carbon capture, reducing the carbon footprint, renewable power generation, and measuring and instrumentation, thereby contributing to sustainable and environmentally friendly technology practices.
Kirat Patel, Executive Director , Alkyl Amines, said, “Clean technology is not just a preference; it’s a necessity for a planet in need. Vishwakarma Awards, with its focus on Clean Technology, serves as a conduit for inventive minds to channel their ideas into impactful solutions. Alkyl Amines is excited to be part of this innovation ecosystem, supporting the exploration and application of clean tech concepts that have the potential to redefine industry norms and set new standards for sustainability.”
Alkyl Amines Chemicals Limited (AACL) is a global supplier of aliphatic amines, specialty amines, and amine derivatives.
Smart Mobility: Revolutionary solutions in satellite technology, unmanned vehicles (airborne or underwater with targeting capabilities), sensors for defence technology, and surface mobility were explored. These innovations aim to enhance transportation systems, reduce congestion, and improve road safety and accessibility.
The Vishwakarma Awards 2023 successfully concluded with the promise of fostering a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship among students, addressing critical issues, and contributing to India’s technological advancement.
Winners
Clean Technology :
Best Product Design:
Criteria: Visual appeal, Attention to Detail, Consideration of environmental impact and functionality.
Golden Plastics :
Rajdeep Singh Devra and Urvish Shah
“Revolutionizing 3D printing: Our innovative 3D printers use plastic granules or failed prints as feed, eliminating the need for expensive filaments. With our in-house designed print head technology, we design 3D printers for a greener and cleaner world”
Most Innovative Solution
Criteria: Scientific and Technical robustness, Importance of the problem, Feasibility and practicality, and user-fit.
Design Prototype of Bio-filter to Treatment of Carbon Dioxide Gas Exhausts :
Saunam Halder, Pranadipan Sahoo, Vedant Sanghavi, Aditya Gupta
“We aim to revolutionize the way air pollution is reduced by degrading air pollutants into cleaner and greener products instead of storing them like conventional air purifiers”
Smart Mobility :
Best Product Design:
ROV-Remote-Operated Underwater Vehicle:
Saket Joshi, Sanskruti Gondaliya
“It is a tethered robot that can explore aquatic environments and transmit data and video back to us. We can use it to inspect, repair, or sample underwater structures or ecosystems, or just have fun exploring the depths of a lake or ocean.”
Most Innovative Solution
SQUADRON: Heterogeneous Swarm Technology
Aryank, Anjali
“Implemented autonomous navigation and SLAM localization in swarm multi-rotors with coordinated motion, enhanced by computer vision, mapping algorithms, and efficient task-distributed decision-making.”
Water and Sanitation :
Best Product Design:
IoT enabled real-time Water Monitoring System with Remote Data Accessibility:
Satyam, Tarun Gangar
“Developed an IoT-enabled water monitoring system with GPS and multiple sensors (turbidity, TDS, oxygen, temperature, pressure), featuring an ESP32 microprocessor, hybrid power, AI readiness, and advanced data retrieval, suitable for diverse applications..”
Most Innovative Solution
Pushpak:
Mohit Kumar Gupta , Jatin Jain Anurag Meena, and Harishit Sharma
“We are using waste flowers from temples which are mostly dumped into water bodies and converting them into useful biodegradable Disposable cutlery items which have the potential to replace the already present non-biodegradable cutlery present in the market.”
