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.”
