Indian Innovators by Akshat Agrawal Read Free Book Online Page B

not working on his new ideas at his workshop-cum-lab. He has delivered an INK talk and has been featured at a conference held at the Judge School of Business, University of Cambridge, UK.
     
    Mansukhbhai has been honored with the title of “True Scientist” by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. President Pratibha Patil awarded him the Grassroots Innovator Award. He has 25 other national awards to his name. He counts Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi among his customers and has been promised every possible support by him. Forbes magazine has named him “India’s Most Powerful Rural Entrepreneur” while National Geographic called him “NatGeo Eco Hero.”
     
    For the Innovator in You
     
    “Bas apna kaam karte raho, himmat mat haaro. Kitni bhi mushkil aaye, peechhe mat hato. Jab aap koi achchha kaam karte ho, to phir use aage le jaane ke liye bahut se acchhe log mil jaate hain.” (Do your work and do not lose heart. Whatever difficulties come your way, do not give up. When you do good work, you will definitely find good people to help you out.)
     

 
    Nelvin Joseph
     

Artificial Intelligence-based Power Saver
     
    Nelvin, who describes himself as a happy-go-lucky nerd, had his first brush with computers in Class IV, when his dad took him to his office. Inquisitive by nature, he quickly developed a keen interest in computers and approached a computer training institute near his home, in order to learn more.
    At the institute, he came across a course on C (the programming language). He thought that with such a simple name (just one character of English alphabet), the course would be very basic and easy. He decided to get enrolled, but the institute stated that he was too young for the course.
     
    Given his curiosity, he would not take no for an answer and convinced them to let him attend the classes. Within a few months, at the age of eight years, he was a diploma holder in computer programming using C language!
     
    Thereafter, Nelvin had to move to a hostel as his parents decided to admit him to a Sainik school. At his new school, he met some of the best teachers he has ever had. The love for books led him to spend most of his free time in the school library. The librarian grew so fond of him that he used to procure books just for Nelvin.
     
    “Usually in Sainik schools, most people are actively involved in sports and other extracurricular activities. But I was always surrounded by books. My classmates used to jeer at me and I did not have any good friends at school.
     
    That made me create my own world – a world in which I could let my imagination loose. It also taught me not to care about what other people think or say about me.”
     
    During his early teens, he got to see the super-hit Hollywood movie, The Terminator. That sparked his interest in robots. Thanks to his resourceful librarian, he started reading more about robotics. That was his first introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI).
     
    After school, he decided to pursue Electronics Engineering and joined an engineering college in Thiruvananthapuram.
     
    “At college, I was very active in various technical activities. I used to manage the computer labs, organize events for various technical clubs and represent the college at programming competitions. I was a very active member of the IEEE (a global organization that supports activities related to electronics and electrical engineering) chapter of my college.
     
    The higher education system in India is so rigid that it does not reward you for anything except your performance in a few exams related to the courses prescribed for your degree. So, even when I was heavily involved with technical activities at college, I was never among the toppers.”
     
    The academics of his course did not interest him. “Engineering courses are very theoretical and outdated. The teaching is usually uninspiring and there is hardly any hands-on work involved. This inhibits learning and crushes creativity. I used to hate the