“My uncle would come dwelling exhausted each day, carrying a 20-litre tank of pesticide on his again. Watching him in ache made me wish to do one thing, and that’s how the concept of ‘KrushiBot’ was born,” says Aditya Pingale.
Within the small village of Awankhed, in Maharashtra’s Nashik district, a 17-year-old is making an attempt to vary the way forward for farming. He doesn’t have tens of millions of rupees in funding or a crew of engineers working in a high-tech lab. What he does have is a giant coronary heart, a stack of scrap elements, and the assist of his college.
Rising up because the son of a farmer, he has seen firsthand how unforgiving rural life could be. His mission is to make life simpler for farmers as a result of he feels their ache in a manner few others can perceive. Having seen the relentless struggles of these he loves, working from daybreak to nightfall, battling the cruel climate, and enduring bodily exhaustion, he understands all too nicely the toll it takes on each their our bodies and their spirits.
His father works tirelessly to supply for his or her household of six, whereas his uncle, a grape farmer, typically returns dwelling after a strenuous day within the fields, weighed down by a heavy pesticide tank that leaves his physique aching. “I watched him come again each day, and complain about his stiff joints and sore physique. It broke my coronary heart,” Aditya says softly. “I knew there needed to be a greater solution to resolve these issues.”
From watching ache to constructing hope: The start of an thought
This sense of frustration and empathy lit an thought within the pupil’s thoughts. He knew that the limitless cycle of bodily pressure and monetary burden was not sustainable, and he was decided to vary it. That’s when the idea for ‘KrushiBot’ was born, an progressive answer to ease the heavy load carried by farmers like his uncle.
With nothing however willpower, ingenuity, and the assistance of his college, he turned his dream into actuality. The bot is designed to deal with the bodily challenges of farming, notably the arduous process of spraying pesticides. Constructed from scrap supplies, the bot will not be solely a mechanical answer, however it additionally stands as a logo of hope and innovation for the farming group. Although it could not boast the high-tech sources of enormous corporations, it embodies the facility of native data and a need to enhance the lives of those that want it most.
“I might see farmers, particularly my uncle, carry a heavy tank on his again and stroll by the complete area, spraying every part by hand,” says the 17-year-old to The Higher India. “Finally, he developed again ache and shoulder issues. I realised I’ve to discover a answer to avoid wasting him from long-term well being repercussions.”
That realisation led him to consider a mobile-controlled and battery-powered spraying robotic that farmers can function from their telephones, eradicating the necessity to carry heavy tools throughout the fields.
In 2023, whereas nonetheless in Class 9 at Madhyamik Vidyalay Awankhed, Aditya enrolled in a cell repairing course supplied by the Salaam Bombay Basis. The muse’s STEM and robotics programme encourages college students to unravel real-world issues utilizing know-how.
“We had been requested to consider an issue round us and construct one thing to unravel it,” the scholar remembers. “Instantly, I considered my uncle and the opposite farmers in our village.”
No lab, no funding: Simply utilising scrap and minimal sources
With no prior formal data of coding or robotics, he got down to study every part from the bottom up. He acquired assist from Salaam Bombay, which supplied him coaching in cell know-how, fundamental electronics, and coding, abilities he had by no means imagined himself studying earlier than. At dwelling, his father grew to become his hands-on mentor, educating him the best way to weld and work with instruments.
In the meantime, his shut associates, Parashram Pingal and Abhijeet Pawar, performed an vital position in shaping the undertaking, providing design concepts, troubleshooting challenges, and cheering him on each step of the best way. Collectively, they turned a shared dream into one thing actual, constructed not in a lab, however within the coronary heart of their village.
Nonetheless, the prototype of the system was removed from excellent.
“The primary model simply didn’t work the best way I had hoped,” he says. “It was too heavy, the wheels couldn’t deal with the load, and it struggled to maneuver throughout the sphere. However I didn’t wish to cease there. I knew I needed to hold making an attempt and enhancing if I needed to supply some aid to our group,” he provides.
How the primary strive grew to become the primary fail: Reinventing the system
He dismantled the complete prototype and began from scratch. This time, he centered on utilizing lighter and extra sensible supplies. He changed the cumbersome parts with recycled elements like tyres from outdated ride-on toy vehicles, a battery salvaged from a discarded 12-volt toy automobile, and numerous different parts sourced from close by scrap outlets. Each piece was rigorously chosen and repurposed to cut back weight and enhance mobility.
Over months of trial and error, Aditya pieced collectively a functioning machine. The KrushiBot can carry a 16-litre tank, runs on a 12V rechargeable battery, and is managed utilizing a NodeMCU, a Wi-Fi-enabled microcontroller that connects to a cell phone.
“By means of the cellphone, the farmer can transfer the robotic in any path and management the sprayer. The NodeMCU receives the sign and instructs the motors,” he explains.
He additionally put in a 360-degree digital camera on the bot, permitting farmers to get a real-time view of the sphere with out having to bodily stroll by it. As well as, he put in a easy nut-and-bolt mechanism that lets the sprayer be raised or lowered relying on the crop’s top. It is a sensible answer for farms that develop a wide range of crops, akin to tall grapevines and shorter crops like mint. This adaptability makes the system customisable and farmer-friendly
The scholar examined the system on his uncle’s grape farm and his grandfather’s pudina (mint) fields. He needed to see if his creation might make a distinction in actual farming circumstances. Each trials had been successful, proving that the bot is a low-cost, sensible and environment friendly working answer.
How the bot helps completely different farmers
“Earlier than this, it used to take me over an hour and a half to spray the sphere,” says Sandeep Pingal, Aditya’s uncle, recalling the tedious and bodily draining process. “Now I can end the job in underneath an hour, with out carrying something on my again. It’s safer, faster, and I don’t even need to stroll by the sphere to spray pesticides or water. I by no means imagined a schoolboy from our circle of relatives might create one thing like this,” he provides.
The machine not solely diminished his bodily workload but in addition helped in chopping additional prices.
The 17-year-old innovator showcased KrushiBot at competitions like Techvision 1 and a couple of, and the LEGO League in Goa. When he struggled to hold the robotic on a flight as a consequence of its measurement, he didn’t again down. He redesigned it to be foldable, making it compact sufficient for air journey. That is one other instance of his fast considering and willpower.
The ultimate model of the system runs for as much as three hours and will get totally recharged in simply 40 minutes. “I made it gentle and compact so it may be carried simply, whether or not on a motorcycle, a bus, and even on a flight,” he says. “It must be one thing farmers can take wherever with out struggling.”
Gaurav Arora, Chief Progress Officer at Salaam Bombay Basis, remembers assembly the scholar through the STEM programme at his college.
“Aditya stood out for his readability of thought and goal,” Arora says. “We consider college students from underserved communities are surrounded by actual issues, and sometimes have impactful options. They only want the instruments and the chance.” The muse supported the scholar with coaching, parts, and mentorship. However the drive and creativity had been totally his.
“He constructed the robotic piece by piece, studying as he went, and saved enhancing it regardless of having barely any sources. That’s what actual innovation is, discovering artistic options when you might have virtually nothing to work with,” the Chief Progress Officer provides.
‘I wish to make extra KrushiBots and provides them to farmers free of charge’
Now that KrushiBot is totally practical, Aditya has even larger desires. He needs to launch an organization centered on growing low-cost and sensible farming instruments that may be customised for various crops and terrains.
“I wish to make extra KrushiBots and provides them to farmers free of charge,” he says. “Sooner or later, I want to construct a robotic that may additionally kill pests, minimize grass, and handle the complete area.”
He additionally plans to make the system extra adaptable, so it could serve a wider vary of farming wants. By merely swapping out the tyres or altering the nozzle, farmers rising several types of crops can use the identical machine. Whether or not it’s spraying water, fertiliser, or natural manure, the bot could be adjusted to go well with the duty.
“It’s not nearly know-how,” provides the 17-year-old pupil. “It’s about making farmers’ lives simpler, more healthy, and extra dignified.”
From welding scraps alongside his father to studying the best way to code, the scholar has constructed the system from the bottom up. In a world the place innovation is usually seen because the area of the privileged or city, his journey is a reminder that significant change can start wherever, even in a small village, in case you have the resolve to do one thing for the group.
Edited by Saumya Singh; All photos courtesy Aditya Pingale
