MADURAI: Parotta-loving siblings K Balachander and K Balakumar used to frequent a hotel in Melur to savour the dish. But every time the ‘parotta master’ was on leave, they were left disappointed as the dish was off the menu. Determined to find a solution, they invented a parotta-making machine.
The twins, who study in Class 12 at the Melur Government Higher Secondary School, had invented a few devices earlier, and won awards at science competitions. Their ‘parotta machine’ works on hydraulics and produces 25 parottas within five minutes, using five kg of dough. “We wanted to reduce the need for manpower in hotels. So we went through several methods and finally designed our own mach i n e ” , Balachander said, adding that the device makes oil-free parottas.
“It’s more efficient than a ‘parotta master’, and the only effort needed is to roll and heat the parottas. It uses an electric motor, and can even prepare noodles, chapathis, pasta, and idiyappam,” he added. Balakumar explained that other parotta-making machines use a lot of electricity, but this one only consumes as much as a mixie or grinder.
“It costs about Rs 2.5 lakh, but if companies are willing to manufacture it, the price would reduce drastically,” he said, adding that they raised funds through friends, teachers, relatives and the APJ Abdul Kalam Trust to build the device. Among the other inventions of the twins are ‘lifting slippers’, and ‘automatic ambulance signal technology’. The use of the latter was demonstrated in the presence of DSP Subash, the Melur Government Hospital chief doctor and ambulance drivers on August 28 last year.
Their invention was appreciated by the police, doctors and the general public. It requires a GPS device in the ambulance, Balachander explained. When the ambulance leaves the hospital, it alerts the police. Then, it relays the message through speakers set up on electric poles. A blue light alerts road users to the arrival of the ambulance, and they would be able to let it pass unhindered as the speakers would alert them if the ambulance is less than 2 km away.
“Our father died in a road accident as the ambulance arrived late. We lost him at the age of one. We invented this machine in Class 6, when our computer teacher, Paramasivam, taught us about technology. He used to take us to science exhibi t ions. The government-provided free laptops helped us stay up-to-date. We got Rs 15,000, from our headmaster Ravannan, my uncle, and his friends, to spend on this invention,” Balakumar said.