SRIKAKULAM: Rajapu Siddu, an Intermediate second-year MPC student from Jadavari Kottavalasa village under Poonivalasa Grama Panchayat in Therlam mandal of Vizianagaram, has designed a battery-operated e-cycle to commute to his college in Rajam, located 17 km away. Drawing upon the knowledge he gained from the Atal Tinkering Laboratory (ATL) during high school, Siddu transformed necessity into innovation.
Siddu had faced difficulty in attending college in first year, struggling to maintain punctuality while travelling from his remote village. He have to walk at least 3 km to reach Therlam-Rajam main road and later he has to travel another 14 km either in auto or bus to reach his collage. Therefore, he needs to spend at least Rs 60 a day towards travelling expenses.
With his parents, Rajapu Simhachalam and Venkatalaxmi, had left to Chennai for their livelihood. Siddu and his sister Deepika were left in the care of their grandmother in the same village. Deepika is currently studying in Class 10 at Perumali Government High School.
During the summer vacation, Siddu brainstormed ways to overcome his commuting problem for the second year. Inspired by his ATL training from Classes 6 to 10 at Perumali, where he learned robotics, Siddu applied that knowledge to design an electric, battery-powered cycle. He procured the materials online from Delhi, and Rajasthan. Siddu designed the electric cycle with the help his teacher Y Eswara Rao and classmate Jaggupalli Rajesh.
Now, he attends college on time every day without any hassle. “I spent Rs 35,000 to purchase materials and for fabrication, in designing the cycle. I was guided by my high school teacher, Y Eswara Rao, who was the ATL in-charge, and my friend Jaggupalli Rajesh of Harsha Balaga village assisted me. He is studying Inter second-year BiPC at our college,” Siddu told TNIE.
Siddu designed the e-cycle with three gears. The first gear allows a speed of up to 25 kmph, the second gear supports speed between 25 and 35 kmph, and the third gear accelerate up to 50 kmph. The cycle is fitted with a hub motor and an accelerator. “We can carry up to 120 kg of weight on the cycle, and it has a provision for pillion rider,” Siddu said. The battery takes about three and a half hours to charge fully and can run up to 80 km on a single charge.
“After designing the battery-run cycle, my daily expenditure to reach college has come down to Rs 6 on an average—nearly one-tenth of what I used to spend earlier,” Siddu said, comparing his current costs with his previous expenses. “Siddu needs some help from any designing units to improve the battery-run cycle with more options and a attractive design,” opined Eswara Rao and Rajesh.