 In this edition of Change Makers, we celebrate the power of women in the realm of innovation. Energy conservation has enormous potential to boost economic growth while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, turning off the light when you leave the room, unplugging appliances when they are not in use and walking instead of driving are some of the steps that we must take in order to conserve energy. Energy conservation is the need of the art and taking that into cognizance an innovator named Damini Kosh has made an energy saving device. This is a ready to use device that can be connected to any appliance and can save 30% of the electricity. Another long persisting problem is of evaluation process. The semester evaluation contains so many processes like shuffling, bundling and evaluation at various institutions. This shuffling process is very time consuming and requires a lot of manual work at the same time but luckily an innovator named Ritika has found a solution for this problem and came up with an innovative idea for the same in the form of super shuffling machine. Welcome to another edition of Changemakers. We wish to dedicate today's edition to women power and its ability to bring about a positive change. In this edition, we will introduce two women entrepreneurs who went out of their comfort zone and worked on the issues that touch our lives in one way or the other. These innovators are Damini Gosh and Ritika Chandran while Damini worked on the burning issue of energy conservation, Ritika tackled the issue faced by the teachers during semester evaluation. Please join me to welcome Damini Gosh to begin with. Welcome Damini Gosh for this edition of Changemakers. Damini, please tell us about your innovation. So, basically I am Damini Gosh and the innovation or the product innovation that me along with my teammates have made is known as an energy saver. It has won the National Innovation Contest 2020 and the innovation is just basically appliance or rather it is a device that which when connected to any heavy load appliance like an air conditioner or refrigerator washing machines can save up to 30% of electricity and cut down the electricity bill of the common man. Yeah, that's great. What problem you are specifically solving through this energy saving device? Please explain. Yeah, so the thing is whenever most of us are unaware of the fact that whenever we are switching on our air conditioners or refrigerators, any heavy load electrical appliance it draws an extra amount of high peak current which it does not require for its working application. But the units are being consumed so we are paying for that extra amount of electricity which we are not utilizing to our benefits. So why should we pay for that extra amount of electricity? So that is the main thing where we are pointing out at. We are basically trying to cut off or truncate that extra high peak current through our device and the device mainly consists of a semiconductor device known as triac along with a programmable microcontroller IC and it helps in truncating that extra high spikes or the peak current which the air conditioner or any high load device is drawing and we are paying for it and in that case it is saving around 30 to 40% of electricity and definitely it is cutting down the electricity bill of any common man or institutions and everything. So it is very much cost effective for all, right? Yes. Also once it is out the market how will people know about it, do we have some promotional strategy in mind? Yeah, firstly there is this concept that people as because we are a new brand people won't be believing us at the first stage. So we plan to do social media marketing and promotions because everyone is using social media, Instagram, Facebook. So we plan to promote it through social media. We plan to sell it on e-commerce platforms like Amazon Flipkart because people trust, you know, online shopping is all we have right now. So people trust those sites along with other retail stores, local retail stores like we have Reliance Trends and other retail stores that we have. We plan to coordinate with them so that they can even sell our products and of course we have direct sales option as well. So that is the first stage of promotional strategy that we have through people who are already in the business because and then establish our own name. Yeah, that's great because marketing strategy is one of the important aspect in the startup. Great. So what was your inspiration or your source of motivation behind this innovation? So basically I'm an electronic some communication engineering student and my father is from the same background. So when I was young, I used to see him work on circuits and he's sort of fixing everything in the house. So when I was in my first year, the first thing that we came to know in engineering college that we have to do some project. We need to do some projects. So the first thing that came into my mind is why not make it something innovative? Like everyone is doing some project or the other. So how can I make mine different? And then in my house due to my mom's high blood pressure, AC is working all the time. Like every time even in the month of now it's March, first March during the night time we switch on the AC so because of my mother's health problem. So and the bills were increasing highly. So that was the first time when it occurred to me like if I can do something in that area so that the bills can even by 1000 or 2000 rupees if we can reduce it then it will be helpful for everyone. So that was the first inspiration and because I'm an AC student so further I studied into the subject that where how ACs work and what I can use so that I can do something and reduce the bill or the current consumption. So that's how it started. That's really interesting. What is your take on increasing a role of women in the world of startup and entrepreneurship? From my personal experience I would say that personally I didn't face any problems as such because the other two team mates I have they are both men and they have been supporting me like immensely including my father he has also been supporting me but one of the major challenges that I think that women nowadays are facing is that it said that it's a man's world right so women are not being taken seriously that they can handle a situation or that they can and you know face analytical problems and solve them they are not being taken seriously and that even happened in my case also when the product was in its initial stage people were not taking me seriously that was the first problem and secondly I feel in our country there are still places where women don't get this opportunity or they don't think about business or entrepreneurship in the first hand the first thing that they think is that they'll get educated or then they can do a job the thought of entrepreneurship and women in entrepreneurship I think it's still limited in some places in India but personally in my case I have received immense support from the men in my team the one who handles financial operations including and also the marketing they are both men and they have been supporting me immensely and they believe in whatever I say because I am I am mainly the research and development developer and working on the technical part so I think there are people who are supporting you but people need to have that education and women need to have the education so that they can move forward into any field whether it's entrepreneurship or job or anything they want to pursue I think it's good to know the support you are getting from your team for budding entrepreneur the world will change it's keep on changing yeah there is a range of energy saving devices available in the market so how is your device unique from all of them and creating a difference in the society so basically when I did when I did my competitor analysis we found out that in whenever you type energy saver in Amazon or Flipkart they will show you this small nightlamp thing but actually it consists only of a capacitor which is storing energy so it is sort of creating a false facade like it is saving energy or saving electricity but our devices working on a completely different technological parameter and it is actually saving energy or cutting down on the electricity or the current that's one thing and secondly there is another competitor known as and a life we have that brand but the thing is they are selling it for a much much higher cost like around double or triple our costs so I think ours is much more cheaper plus it's portable it's shock proof it's waterproof and it's really user-friendly like you anyone can actually plug it in it's like as easy as charging a mobile so I think that's how it's different from the competitors in the market and the biggest competitor I think are inverter AC's but maintenance of inverters inverter AC's is really high and like you need to change the entire module and it's really cost it's not at all cost effective so but on the other hand our device will provide a warranty period along with complete replacement and it's really cheap so I think that's how it's different how people can connect it to their appliances and also is it cost effective the plugging in the energy saver is as easy as charging a mobile phone because all you need to do is take the plug of the air conditioner or the refrigerator and plug into the main socket of the energy saver and plug the energy saver to the main power line that's it that's all you need to do there's no other hassle and regarding the cost effective thing we are providing the device at a much cheaper rate like one unit will cost only 3000 rupees whereas our competitors are selling it for around 10 to 12,000 rupees and the technological parameter and to operate it it's really simple there's no hassle or anything once you plug it in it will work on its own and you will get to see the difference once you in the electricity bills after a month or two or two style that's it yeah it's amazing Dominic we are waiting the product to come to the market and how did you utilize your funds received from MIC and did you receive funds from other sources to the fund that I that we received first phase funding it was the first thing that we did was we applied for the patent and thankfully we got that application number it's still pending but hopefully in a few weeks time we'll have a patent that's the first thing that we did and then we produced 50 prototypes and 20 of the prototypes are being extensively tested at our college itself in Kolkata 20 other prototypes we are testing it in a factory at Kujbihaar that is in West Bengal and we have also provided some of the prototypes to our friends and family and we have received satisfactory feedback apart from that we are working also on the product development we are testing it with IGBT and we are working on the looks of the product that's the main thing that we are working on right now and also in product development we are trying to change the components they know circuitry for better efficiency so we can save much more electricity or we can reduce the size or the weight we are working on that and that's how we utilize the first phase of funding and regarding any other funding places we didn't receive any other funding this was what we received till now that's great it's good to know how applied for the patent as well so what are your future goals so regarding the future goals the first thing that we want to do is the thing for which we need the second phase funding as well is the marketing capital we want to market the product in such a way with you know with ad agencies and also we have talked with other marketing agencies so that they can help us circulate forms and you know take the market analysis into account that's one thing apart from that we want to test the product with IGBT which I'm currently it's in process so that for better efficiency and also reducing the size we further want to expand our business like two other states of West Bengal as well like first we want to start with Kolkata and then we want to expand to other states and if we can you know crack a deal deal with the shopping malls or the restaurants because they are extensively using air conditioners they actually need this device more than anyone else so we can if we can crack a deal with them right now we even have cracked a deal with the entire Techno India group in the East region so that they can incorporate it in their institutions the deal has been tracked through our college only so if that deal comes into hand then we'll be installing it in all the colleges of the group Techno India group that's one thing and apart from that I think we'll be adding more products to the if you want to expand the business we are working on a few other prototypes as well so that we can bring it them to the market as well so that's all yes it's good to know that you understand the market thoroughly I'm sure such an impressive product must have received many accolades and recognition please share a few with us so the first thing that we of course national innovation contest that was the huge that was the biggest thing that happened to us and after that recently on 30th December 2022 we were we received the Innovation of the Year award at the 36th Industrial India International Trade Fair organized by Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industries and the Sister Nevedita University that was one thing apart from that we also won a Hult Prize on campus on 2022 and we also were the finalists at the Melbourne Regional summits apart from that we participated in a few other business plan competitions where we pitched for the prototype and we got a few positions over there but the recent thing that the Innovation of the Year award that was a big thing that we received and of course that's it yeah congratulations like I have said many awards and we wish you all the best in your future endeavors as well thank you thank you that was Dhamini let's hope her entrepreneurial journey takes her to the pinnacle of success now it's time to invite our second innovator of the edition Mrs. Ritika Chandran Mrs. Ritika Chandran please tell us about you and your innovation Hello everyone myself I'm Ritika Chandran now I'm proudly say that with the help of AICTE I'm an a startup runner for an B.R. Chronicles Hub and my innovation is entailed super softening machine this is in a particular innovation used during the evolution process of semester examinations what the particular problem you are solving through your super shuffling machine please explain how does it work mama actually I'm already told about these texts and procedures followed for an evolution process in that for that particular evolution process nearly 50 to 70 people were being used for that particular evolution process and also they have a daily wages of 300 rupees per day so for example if you take one number two and a 30 days for the particular process it alone take 9,000 rupees so when you totally compared it nearly four lakh rupees alone they had spent it for then a particular evolution process bundling and also transportation etc so when we thought that our super softening machine only cost up nearly three to four lakhs only so when once we finalized our product the particular amount that we fixed for our product innovation is an investment of an a six months of process only so our machine is in a very cost effective and also it is in a first machine that will be in the market for that particular process so I think we will provide a very cost effective because they're spending it for any every six months they're spending nearly five lakh rupees so our machine is total cost nearly three lakh rupees only so I think our machine is in this way it was very cost effective. Great. Ritika what was your inspiration or your source of motivation behind this innovation? Behind this innovation it has a little bit of story so in college also I had a well studying student and head of my class also so when I entrepreneur in the Institute of India arranging one bootcamp at Periyar University Salem and also in another university and another one academic college near Salem so when I'm going to attend this bootcamp one resource person came from university and he was discussed so many things actually in that bootcamp we are the people of engineering students medical students, pharma students, arts and science students and it is in a mingle of bootcamp so when he asking some questions about engineering so actually I haven't so many born in engineering so I was challenging him that if you said any problem I can solve with our solution and technology likewise I was challenging him so at that time he tell us about this particular problem so in our university we are facing this problem evolution problem which I said earlier so at that time I was challenging him that sir every problem has a solution and definitely we will give that for that so at that time in 2020 I'm in a final year student of EC so at that time I was taking it as a challenging product now it just became my life. Yeah it's great. Rithika what is your take on increasing role of women in the world of startup on entrepreneurship? Being a woman please. So actually the real thing is we have an independence at 19 part is heaven but during this decade also we are when particularly women come to in a manufacturing process and so many things we are facing so many struggles and also when I was in a going for this innovation I must have facing personally I'm not able to go some places after 10 o'clock or after 11 o'clock it's when I it was a very difficult thing for me so when I was started that I planned that every woman should come forward under doing this so when I going to start my product innovation I planned that I'm only taken a employees or women employees only so for a particular mission it has two operators and one developer and one mechanical engineer SLS and one electronics engineer so I planned to take all women employees and given a full freedom for them if my industry is going after 10 o'clock they wish they can work so not looking to other industries so this is the way forward some steps I was taken to a woman enterprise through my investment so yeah that's great you are taking a lot of steps to empower women in the field what are the challenges that you face at the onset of your journey as an entrepreneur? It is a very big thing because when a woman particularly came from a middle-class family with a single mother it isn't a very big task because as a woman I went to a product development to coin for prototype development nearly Coimbatore to Bhavani it will take around three hours of traveling so when I have to wake up at 6 o'clock then cook for my team myself my team members to members for electronic engineer and mechanical engineer then I will go to Coimbatore nearly 8 o'clock I was again completing my product development then I will come here nearly offering midnight 12 only I came to phone in between I'm not able to cook for all the time so sometimes and also the budget for our product it also you know too much cost because I was borrowed from my friends and family only so initially I don't have any amount in my assets financially so at that particular difficult period so I was having the money for a bus to go there but I did not have any money to come back but what a hope that means God will help help me in some other way or anyway so I just came came to my product development definitely in that particular day I will receive that particular amount so in that difficult period of under three months we did not eat our lunch also so because for three people it nearly 250 to 300 rupees alone takes to our lunch so we are even we avoid our lunch because we are working overtime two to three it will take so when it is come to 4 o'clock we just take some tea and samosa itself so life is that particular three months was a very golden period of my life also sacrificing so many things and sacrificing so many people so under particular period when we come I was spent nearly 565,000 rupees with an initial I didn't have zero so finally and when I was taking I have in a 500,000 rupees but I did not get any output from my prototype so I was totally up and up closed so then only I was participated in natural innovation contest and that time I was completed two levels and third level of competition were conducted that so I was attending that level and the result is came that I was in a finalist and with the grant of 10006.5 lakhs so I think at the time only I believe that God is alive and definitely our hard work never fails and it will be re-backed so after that again I start my prototype with initially first after completing R&D so instead 3.25 lakhs now extended and we start up started and officially registered our company Bia Trony Club now the GST registration also complicated so this is in a start-up story of my innovation and great great great. Ritika is there any other similar machine available in the market if yes then how is your super shuffling machine device unique and making an impact? Actually this is a first product which is new to the market so now we don't have any competitors we look for in a company it says means there are automated machine making industries only but we did not see any similar products in the market our product is an only innovative product to the market in first time okay great how did you utilize your funds received from MIC and did you receive funds from some other sources too? No ma'am as I said earlier that I was collected of fund as in borrow from my friends and family only then ACP will fund MIC innovations will help me with the fund of 3.5 lakhs we utilize this fund for our to start our company and as well as in a technology development of new product it's good that you have bootstrapped and the first help you got it from MIC through national innovation contest please tell us how national innovation contest helped you in your start-up journey ma'am actually in true words that national innovation contest only give me a life as an engineer so for every engineer it wasn't a dream in that they have to do work with their core so many there are some other people who have go for an IT field and so many things but when we I would take an easy that I was a very focused with I was something do with my core and particularly in innovation so that isn't a true MICs would help me to achieve it so you register will start up right yeah ma'am okay great if you have to give a message or some advice to our budding entrepreneur what would it be ma'am my particular advice is once you take some innovation or other things you should stand financially very strong and also because when we go for some prototype you get failures so many times but you planned it for a first prototype but you need to develop 10 or 15 or more than 20 or sometimes so when we go for that the financial step is very important and also that please go within some states that you will finalize it for example if you developed the particular product means you have first testing then we have to be in a manufacturing then only you have to be in a commercialization then only you got going to be in a registered company so do not waste your time from backward classes so first you have to plan yourself what you have in a dream accordingly it's great you understood thoroughly the entrepreneurship process flow what are your future goals with you ma'am actually my future goals is it is not manufacturing in a same product like in a super supply machine I want to do it within a different type of products and innovation for example take some idea and have to develop it into a particular product which is especially a commercialized product this is used for a rural area people and also be a chronicle is not only used for a manufacturing process and innovation product development it also used for a women empowerment related small things manufacturing so life was planning accordingly I'm sure such an impressive product must have received many accolades and recognitions please share a few with us I was received an innovator award in our college level only then I did not apply it for any other competitions and other things because we are receiving fun from ACP MIS innovation cell so the project duration is not completed till now so I wait to complete this then only I just applied it on the other sources yeah thank you Ritika thank you for being with us we wish you all the best for your future endeavors also thank you thank you ma'am thank you our women innovators and entrepreneurs like Dominion Ritika are proving to be a real game changers their work will certainly go a long way in bringing about the desired betterment in our lives let's extend our support and cheer for them as they take their confidence rights towards success and triumph that's all for today from I and we'll meet you soon with some more inspiring stories and personalities till then take care