A 14 year old boy, dressed in a smart blue suit, became the topic of conversation at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, after he signed a Rs 5 Crore-worth memorandum of understanding with the state government. Teenaged Harshwardhan Zala signed a deal with the Department of Science and Technology, Government of Gujarat, to facilitate production of the drones that help detect and defuse landmines on war fields.
The higher secondary student had worked on his business plan and made three prototypes of the drone at a time when his peers are fretting over the upcoming annual board examinations. He said he started work on the prototype of the landmine-detecting drone in 2016 and created a business plan too. "The inspiration struck when I was watching television and learned that a large number of soldiers succumb to injuries sustained due to landmine blasts while defusing them manually," he said. Spending a total amount of Rs 5 Lakh on the three prototypes, Zala said his parents had shelled out approximately Rs 2 Lakh for the first two prototypes, and later received Rs 3 Lakh from the state for the third.
It is wired to locate and destroy. "The drone has been equipped with infrared, RGB sensor and thermal meter along with a 21 megapixel camera with a mechanical shutter that can take high resolution pictures as well," he explained. It is designed to send out waves that cover eight sq mt area while flying two feet above the surface, the waves detect land mines and communicate their location with a base station. "The drone also carries a bomb weighing 50 gram that can be used to destroy the landmine," he said.
Zala has already registered for a patent and has even set up a company of his own, Aerobotics. He said, "I started making drones on my own and set up an interface with a base station but realised I need to do more. So I fixed payloads that detect landmines. I have several other plans that I want to execute once the patent for this drone is registered." His father Pradhyumansinh Zala is an accountant with a plastic company in Naroda, and his mother Nishaba is a homemaker.
His passion to get his product patented and produced got leverage during a visit to Google, Inc. headquarters in the US. "This was part of an all-expenses paid trip to the US that was part of a prize I won during an innovation event at LD College of Engineering. Now, I need to inform these investors about the MoU and I am sure they will be ready to invest in my company," he said.
