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Sikar resident in race for Asian Innovation Awards

Special Correspondent

Selected for developing a machine that digs out groundnut pods left in the soil

JAIPUR: A grassroots innovator from Rajasthan has been selected as one of the finalists for the prestigious Asian Innovation Awards 2005. Yusuf Khan from Sikar district is one of the 12 innovators who have been short-listed as finalists from across Asia. The awards are presented by the Asian Wall Street Journal on an annual basis.

According to Rajeev Singhal, Chief Innovation Manager(Acting) of Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network (GIAN)-North, Mr.Khan developed a machine that digs out groundnut pods left in the soil after the harvesting operation.

Crop output

As such, 20 per cent of the groundnut crop output is left behind in the soil after the main crop is harvested. This has to be collected manually through a very tedious and inefficient process which requires 50 maydays to pick one hectare. The machine does it in one day, he said.

Out of the 12 innovators in the finals, five are from the database of the Ahmedabad-based National Innovation Foundation(NIF), an autonomous body set up in 2000 by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, to augment unaided grassroots innovations and traditional knowledge practices developed by local communities and individuals.

Mr.Khan was scouted by Sundramji Verma, a farmer and collaborator of Honey Bee Network, a group which coordinates knowledge sharing among local people. Mr.Khan is the recipient of the third national awards on grassroots innovations.

The finalists

The other finalists for the Asian Innovations Award 2005, to be presented on September 27 in Singapore, include Amrutbhai Agrawat from Gujarat, Mohammad Saidullah from Bihar and Sanket Chitagopakar and Prashanth Harshangi from Karnataka.

Mr.Agrawat has developed a simple but extremely useful modification in the conventional pulley used in drawing water from deep wells by providing a ratchet mechanism.

This holds the rope in position while drawing water and helps the person to catch his/her breath without the bucket slipping back all the way to the bottom.

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