The Union Education Minister launched ‘The Ventilator Project’, a book on the prodigal invention by an IIT-Kanpur consortium on March 16 at 6 PM, in a virtual event hosted by the institute. This book narrates the success story of how IIT-K alumni joined hands to create the Noccarc V310 ventilator- in an unbelievably brief period of 90 days, amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic and nationwide lockdown. This world-class incubator fulfilled the country’s dire need for life-saving equipment, boosting the public health machinery in the face of an imminent crisis.
The story behind The Ventilator Project
When India entered into the eclipse phase of the blanket COVID-19 lockdown on March 24, 2020, it was faced with the glaring shortcomings of its medical infrastructure to handle a worldwide pandemic. Besides restricting movement, the coronavirus pandemic snubbed the economic capacities and infected ecosystems of growth all across.
However, this only increased the grit and ambition of young companies to come together and address the challenges posed by the pandemic. Under the COVID-19 Solution Challenge launched by the Union, IIT-Kanpur and its incubated companies joined the movement with enthusiastic fervour. One such company, Noccarc Robotics, under the leadership of Nikhil Kurele and Harshit Rathore decided to develop a fully-functional low-cost ventilator amidst a nationwide lockdown.
What makes this story different is the fact that these entrepreneurs turned the project into a reality in 90 days. While lockdown restricted movement, coordination was mapped by daily Zoom calls, WhatsApp texts and the company delivered the impossible, in style! This ventilator has acquitted the Noccarc team with a lot of credit and accolades, including the title trophy at the India International Science Festival (IISF, 2020) in the ‘ventilator’ category.
A step closer to place India as a world leader in technology
The Ventilator Project has been penned by Professor Amitabha Bandyopadhyay, Professor In-charge of the IIT Kanpur Incubator, SIIC and an experienced IIT Kanpur alumnus, Mr. Srikant Sastri, a board member at the Incubator. The two authors have artfully captured the compassion, grit and energy of the young talent.
This book is evidence of how academia can boost the development of affordable and low-cost state-of-the-art technology. Published by Pan Macmillan India, this incredible account aims to inspire academic institutions and business developers across all industries to build bridges amongst them, paving India’s way to global leadership in development.
