After making a hydroelectric unit that brings light to 60 households in his village, P.V. Suresh, who could study only up to Class 9, has now come up with another innovation. And he has bagged the third prize at the 10th Biennial Innovation Award of National Innovation Foundation (NIF).
Suresh, 41, an autorickshaw driver and a rubber-tapping worker, has developed an automated areca nut tree climber.
The selection has been made from around 12,500 entries.
The national award has been presented to Mr. Suresh at the Festival of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, inaugurated by President Ramnath Kovind in Gujarat. The other award winners from Kerala include Roy Mathew and E.V. Thomas for their improved nutmeg variety, and Shaji Varghese for a fruit capper.
The automated areca nut tree climber can be used for climbing and harvesting nuts under remote control. The machine has forward, reverse, and neutral gears. It is adaptable to palms of various thickness and completes harvesting in two-three minutes. The fuel consumption is around 0.5 l per hour.
Risky business
“Areca nut tree has to be climbed thrice a year. It is risky and requires a skilled labourer. First I developed a machine that works on electricity. As power supply was an issue, I designed a petrol engine,” Mr. Suresh said.
“He hails from a very poor family and could study only up to Class 9. But his mind is always behind new ideas,” James P. George, DDM, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Malappuram, said. NABARD, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Department of Agriculture, and ATMA Malappuram supported the venture.
In 2004, Suresh made a hydroelectric unit that brings light to 60 households in his village. Two years later, he developed a ropeway system for transporting agriculture produce.
“Suresh astonished me when he demonstrated a machine that carries a person weighing 80 kg onto a palm,” Habeeburrahman, professor and head, KVK Malappuram, of Kerala Agricultural University, said.