KOCHI: TNIE speaks to the founder of a startup who dreamt big and has succeeded in coming up with an innovative product that can save lives, detect corpses in waterbodies, map underwater terrain and transport food and medicine to stranded people
Many times, life experiences or persons act as motivators for people to take the least trodden path. For Anoop A B, it was the harrowing visuals of the 2018 Kerala floods which made him think differently. While offering his unstinting support to the district administration by volunteering in rescue and relief operations, Anoop was left looking on as people got swept away by the raging water.
However, the incidents inspired him to come up with an innovative product that can save lives, detect corpses in waterbodies, map underwater terrain and transport food and medicine to stranded people. This was the beginning of Rescue Rangers, an equipment that serves as an added advantage to manpower, especially during a crisis.
“It is very difficult to save a person who is being swept away by the water currents,” says Anoop, who has spent the last four years researching the development of the remote-controlled machine that can be deployed to rescue a person in such a situation.
Anoop is now the founder and CEO of Dexter Innovation Technologies Pvt Ltd which has been registered with the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) and Startup India. The product ‘Rescue Rangers’ was patented in 2023.
According to Anoop, the device is the world’s first multi-purpose life-saving equipment that acts as an exclusive quick and safe search and rescue device in water. “When a person gets carried away by the gushing water, it is difficult to perform a rescue operation simultaneously. If Rescue Rangers is sent into the water, the person can just hold on to the device and the one who controls the product on shore can direct the operation,” says Anoop. The device has GPS, four motors on either end, a high-resolution underwater camera, searchlights, a beacon siren, and cameras at the front end.
As for funding, Anoop says, “I bootstrapped and my initial investment came to around `25 lakh. I received funds for the development of Rescue Rangers from the State Bank of India.”
The remote-controlled propulsion device uses only two of the motors, however, as per need all four can be put to use.
“When the equipment is working on two motors, it can carry a load of up to 120kg. However, when it is running on all four motors, the load-carrying capacity is around 240 to 300kg. If the device is unable to track the person, it returns on its own,” he adds.
The most important feature of Rescue Ranger is the dual-frequency sensor used in it. This sensor can detect corpses underwater. It can also differentiate if it’s either a body or any other object. “When a body is identified, it alerts the rescuer by sending a beacon. The sensors can measure the depth of rivers, canals, dams and any waterbodies,” he says.
According to Anoop, the device can also be used by the Fire and Rescue Services, Disaster Management Authority, Fisheries Department, Navy, Coast Guard, merchant ships, ferry boats, lifeguards and fishing boats. “The basic model of the device costs around Rs 3 lakh. This can be attached to a ferry. But deploying Rescue Rangers to deep sea and other complicated terrains would require additional features and hence can cost between Rs 25 lakh to Rs 30 lakh,” adds Anoop.