In contemporary India, where urban children are completely divorced from the realities of rural countryside, it’s a wonder that a young, budding scientist from a privileged South Delhi background should think about bettering the lives of Indian farmers.
Suhani Chauhan, currently a student of Class XI at Amity International School, New Delhi, was recently awarded the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar by the President of India, Draupadi Murmu, for her pathbreaking innovation called ‘SO-APT’, a unique solar operated agro-vehicle with portable tools.
Suhani Chauhan’s innovation, the ‘SO-APT’ agri-vehicle
Chauhan must have been a perspicacious child in Class VII when a seemingly innocuous chapter on farmers made her pause and think. “There was a chapter in Geography, where American farmers were compared with Indian farmers, and I found the contrast startling. While the former were shown as ‘big businessmen’ with huge farms, Indian farmers were poor. It set me thinking and that can be said to be the genesis of this vehicle,” shared the student in an interview with Science India.
For her summer science project, she started working with her school teachers on a multifunction vehicle for use in farms, that she called SO-APT (Solar Operated Agro vehicle with Portable Tools). “I understood the plight of farmers in our country and the passion for their upliftment led me to the innovation of this unique agro-vehicle. Around 85% of the Indian farmers are economically weak and this vehicle will be helpful in increasing their crop produce and decrease the cost of production. Apart from ploughing, which requires a high amount of energy and power, the vehicle performs all the functions of agriculture. The battery of the vehicle needs to be changed only after 5-6 years, making it long-lasting and highly cost-effective. The photo-voltaic panels installed on the top of the vehicle convert the light rays into electrical energy which operates the vehicle, therefore, there is no fuel consumption involved in the operation of the vehicle, which ensures a sustainable and clean environment,” explained Chauhan.
With zero carbon emissions, this solar powered vehicle can be used for seed-sowing, spraying, irrigation, hole digging, and other farm activities. The energy generated by the solar panels can also be used to power other appliances when not being used, such as fodder cutting machine, centrifugal pumps, fans, lights and even mobile phone. Farmers can also sell any surplus energy that the panels may generate. The vehicle has a distance covering capacity of 60 kms with a fully charged battery, and load carrying capacity of 400 kg. The cost of the vehicle currently is approximately Rs 2.5 lakh, way below the price of a regular tractor.
Design details of ‘SO-APT’ agri-vehicle
While working on the prototype vehicle, Chauhan visited Krishi Vikas Kendra, Manesar, and interacted with farmers to gather practical information.
As per her calculations, if only 1% of the tractors used in India would use her technology, there would be an annual saving of Rs 1,800 crore on diesel. Plus, as much as 272,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide would be dispensed with per year, translating into carbon credits worth 10 million USD (or approx. Rs 84 crores) per year.
Chauhan said she was grateful for the opportunity to meet both the President of the country and the Prime Minister as a result of her innovation. She recounted that the Prime Minister stopped to talk to her in detail about the vehicle after the award ceremony. “As solar power is one of the top priorities of the current government, the solar panels as source of energy in my vehicle align well with that vision,” she said. “I asked him about Suryodaya Yojana, which was launched prior to the awards, to put solar panels on top of 1 crore homes. “He said that he was passionate about the potential of solar energy since his days as the Chief Minister of Gujarat,” shared Chauhan.
Suhani Chauhan meeting the Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the award
“Our PM often mentions that agriculture is our backbone and I read news related to farmers issues regularly. So, I wanted to do something in this field. If I am good facilities and have access to resources, I want to use them to give something back to the country,” said Chauhan, while talking about the drive that kept her going on her project all these years.
She expressed her gratitude to her teachers, and said, “Since the time I started working on the prototype, I was constantly guided and mentored by my teachers and it is because of their belief in me that the project saw the light of the day. Showcasing my innovation during the National Technology Week-2023 was a ‘dream come true’.” She would continue to work on SO-APT to improvise it further.
A science student—she is studying Biology in Class XII—Chauhan said that she wanted to look beyond engineering and medicine and hoped that she would continue to work on scientific innovations that help humanity. Though she appeared a quintessential science geek during the interview, she shared that she loved playing football, and skiing during vacations.
