JHARKHAND: The death of his father's close acquaintance, as he lay unattended for hours following an accident, shook him to the core; the desperation of a haplessness victim as they lie gasping for their final breathe tore something in him, one that never fully healed.
Rupesh Kumar has developed a device which would inform the local police, hospitals and dear ones in case of accidents. Invented by a student of Class 12 in DPS Bokaro, Rupesh’s ‘Rakshak’ can help in saving lives of those who are injured in road accidents.
The device, Rupesh shares excitedly, sends the victim’s whereabouts to the nearest hospitals, the police and family members immediately after an accident, so that swift aid can be sent to their location.
As soon as the accident takes place, the Rakshak sends SMS alert to all hospitals within a radius of one kilometer. The device also provides the exact location of the accident site, allowing ambulance service to reach without delay.
In addition, family members of the victim and the police are also sent immediate alert of the incident so that timely aid can arrive. The device could be linked to a mobile app developed by Rupesh, in order to make it operational.
“MCU (micro-controller unit), sensors, GPS, SIM card, acceleration detector and artificial intelligence (AI) technology have been used in the device. Details of the user, their name, home address, blood group and mobile numbers of family members can be registered in the mobile app connected to the ‘Rakshak’. All relevant data is fed into the device with the help of computer coding,” Rupesh said.
A special type of sensor has been used in ‘Rakshak’, one that detects speed of the vehicle and the shock of the impact, he said, adding that the device would also alert the driver if the vehicle speed exceeds the safe limit.
In case of an accident, the sensor detects the speed of the vehicle and the sudden force on the vehicle due to shock and sends a message to the micro-chip, which then sends out an SMS alert to all registered phone numbers, Rupesh said.
Sharing how he came upon the idea, a grim shadow descends upon Rupesh’s face: “The idea came following the death of one of my father’s close friends. Doctors said he could have been saved had the ambulance reached on time. That’s when I felt the need for a device that could inform emergency services and loved ones about such incidents, and lives can be saved.”
“I discussed the idea with my guide at school, MD Obaidullah Ansari. Then I proceeded to work on the project under his guidance. At the initial stage, it took me about a month to give it a tangible shape and cost about `1,200,” he said. He arranged all the materials for the project online, he added.
Rupesh says, if car manufacturing companies come forward, his idea could be implemented on a larger scale. It will keep the data of drivers and information about accident-prone areas can also be made available, he said.
Rupesh, who appeared for CBSE 12th Board exam this year, said road accidents are one of the major causes of fatality in the country with around 1.5 lakh people dying every year. About 30% of these deaths, i.e. about 45,000 people, die because medical help does not reach on time, he said.
The Government of India has granted a patent to Rupesh Kumar under the ‘Inspire Standard Award Scheme’ for his invention. Rupesh will also get a chance to visit Japan in June 2025, besides a chance to win a `8 lakh cash prize and a stay at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Rupesh, also represented Jharkhand in the 108th Indian Science Congress at Nagpur University, bringing much pride to the state.
Rupesh has had interests in coding since beginning, his father Ravi Shankar Kumar, a Bokaro Steel Limited employee shares, adding that his son has worked very hard on the ‘Rakshak’ project. “This project has two components, the hardware and software, both are authentic and 100% accurate. We have tested it multiple times and it has never failed,” he asserts.
Remembering the accident that prompted the project, Ravi Shankar recalls, “I had a friend, Abhishek Rathor. He met with an accident one early morning in 2011-12 while driving a car from Bokaro to Maa Chinnamastika Temple at Rajrappa. He was critically injured and lay dying there on the road for more than three hours before he was shifted to hospital. He succumbed to his injuries during treatment.
He had lost too much blood. As he was driving by himself, he was unattended for hours, with no one to inform the police or a hospital. My son was shaken from this; soon after he started looking for ways to develop an alert system so that lives could be saved in such cases.”
Working day and night, he finally succeeded in carving his dreams into reality and developed the device, a beaming father says, adding Rupesh wants to become a computer engineer in future.
DPS Bokaro principal wishes Rupesh a bright future, saying the school provides every opportunity to its students to develop their talents. “Rupesh is a very talented student. The school recognised his aptitude for science and inventive traits and further honed them; today, he has excelled and has got a patent from the government,” the principal said, adding that the young inventor is doing important work towards ensuring road safety.
‘RAKSHAK’
As soon as the accident takes place, the device sends SMS alert to hospitals within radius of 1km, also providing exact location of accident, allowing ambulance to reach swiftly
Family members of the victim and the police are sent immediate alerts so that timely aid can reach victim
Device employs a MCU (micro-controller unit), sensors, GPS, a SIM card, acceleration detector and artificial intelligence (AI) tech
Linked to a mobile app in order to become operational. Details of user, their name, home address, blood group and mobile numbers of kin can be registered in the mobile app
Sensor detects speed of vehicle and shock of impact: In case of accident, sensor detects the sudden force due to shock and sends a message to the micro-chip, which then sends out SMS alerts to registered phone numbers