TSIC fostering rural innovation, helping startups
TSIC operates in domains such as student ecosystem startups, grassroot innovators, innovation in government, and communication for innovation
Hyderabad: Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC), set up under the State’s Innovation Policy in 2017 by Information Technology, Electronics and Communications Department, has been helping many to come up with solutions for grass root level programmes. Among others, its `Intinta Innovator’ programme, a programme that nurtures rural innovation, has been fairly successful.
TSIC, which is working to inculcate a culture of innovation in the State, operates in domains such as student ecosystem startups, grassroot innovators, innovation in government, and communication for innovation. It is headed by its Chief Innovation Officer Ravi Narayan, who is also the CEO of T-Hub, Hyderabad.
TSIC has also helped about 100 startups that were hit by Covid fine-tune their products, strategy or to pivot to other products to stay afloat through Rejig.HydStatups, a virtual micro-accelerator programme. Applications were invited in July and Rejig had received 300 requests for support. Rejig.Hydstartups used the city-as-a-whole approach, to mentor, support, and help the startups connect with investors and corporates.
Investor networks and venture capitalists including Aavishkar, Accel, Arali Ventures, Ankur Capital, Artha Ventures, BASF Venture capital, Beenext, Beyond next ventures, Bharat Innovation fund, Endiya Partners, Hyderabad Angels, IAN and others were others were part of Rejig first batch.
Catching them young
In the school ecosystem, TSIC has formulated Atal Tinkering Lab (ATL) meetups- to bring together all the ATL in-charges under one roof. The innovator meetup series was in five districts and a State-wide T-Innovation Yatra was held in February 2020, which has seem more than 200 innovators and aspiring student entrepreneurs take part in.
Rural innovation
TSIC through it ‘Intinta Innovator’ exhibition and village innovation challenge has been supporting talent from a nascent stage. So far, more than 100 innovators at various stages have been recognised. It is working on scalability and sustainability of innovation, for innovators to become entrepreneurs. Plans have been designed to decentralise to reach all the 33 districts of Telangana.
For instance, there is Vishwaja Reddy, hailing from Karimnagar, who started a company HiCode that makes napkin incinerators and napkin vending machines. The mechanical engineer succeeded in assembling the incinerator components manually and later tied up with a fabrication company. Vishwaja is a ‘Best innovator’ award winner from Karimnagar under the Intinta Innovation programme.
The incinerator has an automatic cutoff for power saving and can burn 100 to 200 pads per day. It took one year for her to make the napkin waste handling machine. She goes to schools and colleges to convince them to buy the machines. One version of the napkin vending machine has a RFID scanner too. It is coded into ID cards so students and employees can use it by scanning the code to get a napkin pad out of the machine.
“I have participated in Intinta Innovaton programme conducted by TSIC. I was selected from district level competition to the State level. I got many opportunities after this event. People started recognising my work and my products got sold in large numbers TSIC supported to bring out many grassroot innovators like me,” says Vishwaja.
Then there is David Eshkol, who created a mileage booster for automobile industry under the brand 5M. He repurposed the available machines to create a 5M Health Boost, which reduces dyspnea and reduces airway stenosis and others.
“We do mileage boost for motor cycles, cars, SUVs, trucks and buses. It is an engine treatment system using ultra sonic waves and gaseous plasma. We help the vehicles users reduce their fuel bills and lower the emissions from vehicles,” he says adding that TSIC helped him convert ideas into innovation.
TSIC is also working with agencies like Palle Srujana, the brainchild of Brigadier (Retd) P Ganesham, which supports rural innovators and creators. Since its inception in 2005, it has helped more than 250 innovators.
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