Foreword

A story that inspires

In conversation withMs Pradnya Sarvade

Amazing innovation

Events

Founding members

About i4C

What’s inside

Issue : 4, 07 Jan 2016

INDIA ka IDEA

Foreword

Wish you a Happy New Year 2016!!

In our endeavor to tap high-potential innovative ideas from different parts of India, so to develop them further into useful market-ready products, we are planning to host a hackathon in Delhi, in line with the Digital Pune Hackathon. Talks are at final stage, and we are now awaiting the formal announcement.

In this issue, we have an article on Rajnish Jain, who has been innovatively transforming the destructive latent energy of Pine needles to fuel gas for generating electricity in the central Himalayan belt of Uttarakhand.

This issue, also features an interview with IPS officer Pradnya Sarvade, who is currently the chief of vigilance of CIDCO, and has been doing an excellent work of curbing corruption through preventive vigilance. You can also read an interview with Arsh Shah Dilbagi- the 17-year old prodigy, who invented a device called TALK – that enables people with speech-impairment to communicate. I hope you find this edition of ‘India Ka Idea’ interesting. As always, we welcome your feedback.

Thanks, Abhay

Dr. Abhay JereConvenor, i4cEditor, India ka Idea

A story that inspires A story that inspires...The central Himalayan belt of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana had been in the past often ravaged by forest fires. The uncontrollable flames raged through long stretches of the central Himalayan forest land, destroying plants and leaving the place barren, devoid of livelihood options. This forced local people to leave the place for search of job opportunities. These destructive forest fires were caused by littered inflammable Pine thorns that fell from the Pine trees predominantly found in this region. Had it not been for Rajnish Jain, the furious forest fires could have probably never been contained. He has made a breakthrough innovation of transforming the destructive energy of Pine into constructive energy in the form of fuel gas that can generate electricity.Rajnish Jain gave up his secured city-life, and relocated along with his wife Rashmi Bharti to a small village, called Tripuradevi in Kumaon Himalayas of Uttarakhand. It was then when Jain came to know of the perilous Pine needles that often led to forest fires destroying all plantations. Jain developed a mechanism to harness the destructive energy of Pine needles using a gasifier, for constructive usage.

Jain exploits the resin inside each Pine needle, which when heated produces enough gas to generate power. Jain has set-up a 9 KW power plant in Berinag village of Pithoragarh, which through the process of gasification and pyrolysis of dried pine needles – generate gas (a mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and methane), which is subsequently fed into a generator set to produce electricity. 1.5 KW of power is consumed in running the plant, and the remaining 7.5 KW is available for productive usage. A temperature of 800 degree Celsius is generated to transform Pine needles into gas. 80% of the Pine needle transmutes into gas. Once this gas is filtered, it can be used to drive an alternator that generates electricity. 20% of the Pine needle is left over as residue. The burnt remnant can be used as charcoal.

Rajnish and his wife Rashmi co-founded the Kumaon chapter of the Barefoot College to cater to the needs of local people, which was later registered as Avani, in 1999. At Avani, they continue to tackle issues ranging from renewable energy to integrated rural development. Rashmi, co-founder of Avani is also the chairperson of the producers’ cooperative, which is into organic farming, making natural fibred textile, natural color, naturally dyed silk, and woolen textiles. Avani also manufactures solar energy products like water heaters and crop dryers.

Contd...

Rajnish Jain

A story that inspiresAs Pine needles can now be converted into fuel gas to generate electricity - it has a monetary value attached, which in turn provides an incentive to local people to collect Pine needles from the forest floor. Villagers earn Rs 1000 for every ton of pine needles collected. Not only are the rural youths hired for collecting Pine needles, but also they are employed to operate the power plants. These apart, using Pine needles for generating fuel gas also save the forest from depletion of trees for the need of fuelwood.

Rajnish’s has now built a 120 KW plant. This power plant at Chachret village, which is currently under test run, had cost Rs 1.25 crore to set up. At present (December 17, 2015), more than 100 villagers have been provided employment though this 120 KW plant. Jain is now targeting to set up smaller power plants of around 10-25 KW to generate up to 2.5 MW of energy that can provide electricity to more than 58,000 families, and enable hundreds of households to move from kerosene to Pine charcoal. He is now armed with an agreement with the Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited, to sell electricity generated from Pine needles, and take it to remote and inaccessible villages. Courtesy Jain’s innovation, the once accursed Pine needle, is now a blessing for the people of the place.

In conversation with

Pradnya SarvadeChief of Vigilance at City and Industrial Development Organization (CIDCO)

In conversation with Pradnya Sarvade

Pradnya Sarvade is presently the Chief of Vigilance at City and Industrial Development Organization (CIDCO). The government of Maharashtra appointed IPS officer Pradnya Sarvade as its chief, because of her excellent track record as the deputy police commissioner of Mumbai in the anti-corruption bureau, as Addl Commissioner of Police in the anti-corruption bureau of Mumbai, and as Superintendent of Police in CBI’s Bank Securities and Fraud Cell in Mumbai. She shared with us her most satisfying achievements in various capacities as senior police officer. She also shared her significant achievements as of now as the head of vigilance of CIDCO.

Since when did you want to be in the police force, and what made you want to become a police officer?I had no prior plan or intention of becoming a police officer. In fact, I had done my graduation in Medicine and post-graduation in General Surgery. After the completion of my post-graduation, I also happened to clear the civil services exam, and thereafter chose to become an IPS officer of the 1989 batch. Nevertheless, I have attained lot of satisfaction in making larger decisions for society that impacted and benefitted people in mass, in my role as senior police officer in various capacities.

What are the most significant achievements of your career as a cop?In my stint while I was handling the policing of the Port zone of Mumbai, I had introduced the concept of ‘mohalla panchayat’, in which issues that could have later come up to the police, were handled at initial stages by the ‘mohalla panchayat’. This allowed not only quicker mitigation of disputes and delivery of justice, but also reduced the work-load on the police department substantially, freeing them up for focusing on more grave issues. The success of this model, had later led to the adoption of it at the city level. I had also started the ‘Cyber Safety Week’ awareness campaign on offences related to information technology, which educated people on how to take necessary cyber-safeguards. It was a major success.

Contd...

Did you have to face any hardship as a lady police officer in a profession that is pre-dominated by men?No, I have had no adverse experience. It was smooth sailing all the way.

In your stint as Additional Commissioner of Police in the anti-corruption bureau of Mumbai, as Superintendent of Police in CBI’s Bank Securities and Fraud Cell in Mumbai, as well as in various other capacities – was there any particular challenge you had to face that you overcame?The task of heading a big manpower required excellent managerial skills – that was a major challenge. Also, I had the responsibility to groom the police-force under me, to bring them up to good performance.

What are your most significant achievements as the Vigilance chief of CIDCO, since you have been in office from year 2014?As the head of vigilance of CIDCO, I’ve adopted the approach of preventive vigilance rather than reactive one in their effort to altogether remove the incentives of employees in doing corrupt acts. Corruption usually thrives in environments, in which there is discretion in decision making, absence of proper timeline for work-completion, and undefined roles and responsibilities. I’ve been working on these fronts to eliminate anything that induces corrupt activities. All services have been streamlined to follow certain timeline, all roles and responsibilities have been defined, and accountabilities have been established. Under my leadership, all major departments of CIDCO have laid down their work-processes in writing in the form of Operations Manuals to have them explicitly defined and unambiguously stated. Transparency has been brought about in the process of delivering services. All complaint-issues are published on the webpage that can be viewed by public. This transparency has been brought about with the aim to deter CIDCO employees from acts of corruption, as they would see their misdeeds been reported against, taken note of, and being monitored.

Contd...

In conversation with

Pradnya SarvadeChief of vigilance at City and Industrial Development Organization (CIDCO)

Amazing innovation Interview with TALK’S creator- Arsh Shah Dilbagi1. What is your background, and how did you come up with this out-of-box idea of creating an alternative communication device?I am from Panipat in Haryana. I have done my entire schooling from DAV Public school. My father worked in a thermal power station, and my school was located at the thermal colony, where we also stay. I was always interested in robotics and science. In class 8, my father bought me a LEGO Mindstorms kit, which is a mechanical kit like others, but with motors and controllers for programming. Since then I have never stopped making and learning. One day, during late 2013, I was sitting at a doctor’s clinic when I heard a patient continuously crying. When I asked the doctor the reason, he said that the patient had a stroke and was paralyzed, and could not speak since then. So, I asked why he was not using any of the alternative communication devices that were there in the market, which I was aware of. The doctor said that they were highly costly and were not commonly available. That was when the quest for building an affordable, innovative augmentative and alternative communication device began.

2. How did i4c help you vis-a-vis your work on TALK?Dr. Abhay Jere has been continuously mentoring me. The i4c event helped me know eminent people in the form of judges and mentors, from whom I am still learning. This apart, the event introduced me to several other fellow innovators. We are still in touch. We discuss ideas and often seek each other’s advice and suggestion. My social network in the innovation fraternity could not have been built without the event hosted by i4c.

3. Is TALK commercially available now?The product is not commercially available as of now. It is in the testing phase. The working prototype is being rigorously tested for accuracy and implementation. The patent has to be filed and then upon successful testing, I would be selling the patent, and license it.

4. By when would TALK be available in the market?That totally depends on the company or individual, who buys the patent, or who gets the license; and also whether they would want to develop the device further.

Innovation: TALK

Arsh Shah Dilbagi

Contd...

Amazing innovation Interview with TALK’S creator- Arsh Shah Dilbagi5. Why do you wish to sell off the patent and not have it yourself, you being the originator of the idea?Unlike computer apps or other small devices that are mostly conceptualized, developed, and marketed by the same entity, a medical device requires full-time marketing that can be best done by a marketing professional. Also, if I sell the device to somebody, I need to be continuously there with the person for assistance as the person would be disabled - to ensure whether the device has been correctly placed, the person is comfortable, that he doesn’t go out of breath, and others. Medical devices require huge after-response. All these factors call for a big starting infrastructure.

6. What is your future plan? Which subject would you like to take up in graduation? Are you keen on pursuing post-graduation?I have just completed 12th, and have decided to take a gap from studies. I have two start-ups that work on very different things, and have few projects going on. Up until the next fall, that is Sept 2016, I would be working on these. Subsequently, I wish to pursue my graduation from a college outside India.I wish to graduate in computer science. Post-graduation totally depends on how my graduation goes.

Innovation: TALK

Arsh Shah Dilbagi

Events Upcoming eventsDigital Delhi HackathonAwaiting final announcement

Digital Maharashtra HackathonTo be finalized

Goa Idea & Innovation Competition (Gi2C) 2015The ‘Goa Idea & Innovation Competition (Gi2C) 2015’ event was organized in collaboration with Goa State Innovation Council, the Education Department Govt. of Goa, Vidnyan Parishad Goa, and Persistent Systems Ltd. This was the first of its kind science and technology innovation competition among students and scholars in the state of Goa. This event was organized as a part of the fourth Bharatiya Vigyan Sammelan (BVS) 2015.

Past eventsDigital Pune Hackathon 2015Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi envisages 100 smart cities in India. With this goal in mind he launched the ‘Digital India’ initiative. In order to help materialize the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision, i4c is organized an innovation competition followed by a 30-hour hackathon for under-graduate and post-graduate students of computer science/ENTC of Pune, to identify new, disruptive, and sustainable digital solutions to the problems the city of Pune is facing in various walks of life.The following governing bodies had provided the problems they are facing to accomplish their goals:• The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)• Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd. (PMPL)• Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA)• Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd (MSEDCL)• Police Depti4c had put forward these problems to the computer science students of all colleges in Pune. The students are engaged themselves to any of the problems in any of the sectors—based on their interest—to find out a viable idea that can be coded to form a digital solution. The evaluation committee screened the submitted ideas, and shortlisted the best amongst them. The corresponding students whose ideas were shortlisted were called upon for a 30-hour non-stop hackathon, where they coded to form working-prototypes on October 11, 2015. 6 ideas have been identified and are in the process of working with the respective governing bodies for effective implementation in Pune city.

Photo galleryDigital Pune Hackathon 2015

i4c house of expertsThe founding members team of i4c boasts of pack of experts with an exceptional experience.

Dr. Anand DeshpandeCEO & Managing Director,Persistent Systems Limited

Dr. Ganesh Natrajan Vice President andCEO, Zensar Technologies

Mr. Sharad Kalmegh Founder President, SwargiyaDadasaheb Kalmegh Smruti Pratishthan Dental College & Hospital

Mr. Bharat AgarwalExecutive Director,Vishwakarma Institute of Technology

Dr. Arun JamkarVice Chancellor, MaharashtraUniversity of Health Sciences (MUHS)

Mr. Ashok KatariaChairman, Ashoka Buildcom Ltd.

Mr. Shrikrishna ChitalePartner, Chitale Bandhu Mithaiwale

Mr.. K. R. NatuManaging Director, Deccan Mechanicaland Chemical Industries Private Limited(DEMECH)

Mr. Ravi Pandit Co-founder, Chairman andGroup CEO of KPIT Technologies

Dr. Rajendra Jagdale Director General, Sciene andTechnology Park, UoP

Mr. Gireendra Kasmalkar MD and CEO, SQS India

Mr. Abhay Gadgil Partner, PN Gadgil and Sons

Mr. Pramod ChaudhariExecutive Chairman, Praj Industries

Mr. Ajay BhagwatFounder, Renu Electronics

Mr. C. ManivannanPresident, Suma Soft Pvt Ltd

About i4c Acknowledgement

Persistent Systems Ltd.Aryabhatta-Pingala 9A/12,Erandwane, Pune-411004,Maharashtra, India.020-67036702

www.i4c.co.inidea@i4c.co.inwww.facebook.com/InclusiveInnovations@indiaKaIdeahttps: //www.linkedin.com/company/inter-institutio0nal-inclusive-innovation-center---i4c

We would like to acknowledge and thank the design and editorial team for their contribution in the first issue of the i4c e-newsletter ‘India ka Idea’

Editorial Team Design Team• Abhay Jere • Charuta Puranik • Disha Singh • Ayananta Chowdhury

What is i4c?• i4c is an independent, non-profit entity. • i4c acts as a platform to proactively scout, showcase and handhold technology innovations,

especially aimed at the base of the pyramid.• Through i4C, we wish to systematically support innovations and innovators and make

themmarket ready. • i4c will also aggressively work to promote the culture of Innovation through crowdsourcing of

new ideas, Grand challenges and Innovation competitions. • Our mentors include esteemed personalities like Dr. Raghunath Mashelkar, Mr. Kiran Karnik &

Dr. Anil Kakodkar.

Our achievements within a year of inception• Partner with CII, DST and AICTE in India’s biggest Innovation Challenge - India Innovation

Initiative (i3), 2014.• Knowledge partner in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan by Govt. of India, 2014.• Knowledge & technical partner at National Level Summit on Srijan Bharati 2014 - Safe drinking water

and sanitation organized by Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation, Govt. of India.• Inclusive Innovation 2013 was the most successful innovation initiative in India till date :

- 150+ innovations showcased - 1,50,000+ people witnessed these innovations - 50+ industrialists involved in determining the commercial sustainability of innovations

• Knowledge Partner for Deloitte reports – Inclusive Indian Innovations – Perspectives & Case Studies (2013) and the Innovation Ecosystem in India (2014).

Contact :Dr. Abhay Jere Convenor i4C,Editor, India ka Idea