Farmer Tondepi Guruvaiah walked away with the second prize of Rs 3 lakh for his 'HerbiSprayer' at the 'Samsung Innovation Quotient', which was held here recently.
The winning innovation is a machine that converts a simple-utility tractor into a multi-utility to enable farmers who do not have sufficient labour power.
"The innovation is solely his. He worked tirelessly, day in and day out to bring this idea to fruition. His wife told me that he'd wake up at 3 in the morning and start thinking of solving the problems of his fellow farmers. He did seven iterations before realising that his idea has worked," says retired Brigadier, P Ganesham, who has been helping Guruwaih.
Also, a young entrepreneur from Ahmedabad bagged the top innovation prize at the occasion, which selected and awarded top three innovations from among the six shortlisted candidates from across the country.
Leo Mavely, won the grand top prize of Rs 5 lakhs for his life-saving product Axiostat, a medically-enhanced pad for stopping uncontrolled bleeding from traumatic wounds.
"I wasn't really expecting it. It came as a big surprise. But I don't think there should be any competition for innovations. All six innovations are winners for me. As they are six different innovations, six different great ideas which will transform the world fundamentally," the elated and humble winner, originally hailing from Thrissur, Kerala told PTI in an interview after the event.
"Roughly 1.5 lakh road accidents happen in India every year and 30 pc of them lead to uncontrolled bleeding. So, if we can stop that profuse bleeding, we can save many lives," says Leo who hails from Thrissur, Kerala.
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He also says the challenge now lay in popularising the idea.
"Death due to road accidents in India is distressing. In many cases casualty happens not due to injury but due to profuse bleeding. MORE