The Smart India Hackathon 2024, a nationwide initiative aimed at providing students a platform to solve pressing problems of various government departments, industries, and organizations, was inaugurated by Union Minister for Education, Dharmendra Pradhan. The grand finale of the event, which was held virtually, saw the participation of Union Minister of State for Education and Development of the North Eastern Region, Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, Secretary, Ministry of Education, Sanjay Kumar, and other officials.
Dharmendra Pradhan, in his address, expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for inspiring the vision of SIH, which has become a hotspot of innovation and creativity. He emphasized that students are the drivers of a Viksit Bharat, and their innovation and zeal can find solutions to the challenges of the world. He also highlighted that the talent, vision, hard work, leadership, and innovation of the youth of the country will pave the way for India to emerge as a 21st-century knowledge economy, a development model for emerging economies, as well as the growth engine of the world.
Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, while addressing the event, emphasized how SIH has transformed challenges into opportunities, paving the way for young minds to contribute to nation-building. He noted the growing participation of women in the hackathon, marking a significant step toward inclusivity. He also commended the Ministry of Education's Innovation Cell for fostering an ecosystem for innovators, promoting entrepreneurship, and advancing a culture of self-reliance.
The 7th edition of the Smart India Hackathon (SIH) began concurrently at 51 centres nationwide. The Software Edition ran nonstop for 36 hours and the Hardware Edition continued from 11th to 15th December 2024. The student teams worked on either the problem statements given by the Ministries/Departments/Industries or submitted their idea in the Student Innovation Category against any of the 17 themes linked to sectors of national importance and national priorities. These included Healthcare, Supply chain & Logistics, Smart Technologies, Heritage & Culture, Sustainability, Education & Skill Development, Water, Agriculture & Food, Emerging Technologies, and Disaster Management.
Some of the interesting problem statements of this year's edition included 'Enhancing Images of Darker Regions on the Moon' presented by ISRO, 'Developing a real-time Ganga Water Quality Monitoring system using AI, satellite data, IoT, and dynamic models' presented by Ministry of Jal Shakti, and 'Developing a Smart Yoga Mat integrated with AI' presented by Ministry of AYUSH.
This year, more than 250 problem statements were submitted by 54 ministries, departments, state governments, PSUs, and industries. An impressive 150% increase was recorded in internal hackathons at the institute level, growing from over 900 in SIH 2023 to over 2247 in SIH 2024, making this the largest edition so far. More than 86,000 teams participated in SIH 2024 at the institute level and around 49,000 student teams (each consisting of 6 students and 2 mentors) were recommended by these institutes for the national-level round.
The Smart India Hackathon has gained massive popularity among young innovators since its launch in 2017. In the last six editions, innovative solutions have emerged in different domains and stand out as established startups. The hackathon is in line with the Prime Minister's vision of youth-led development and has been instrumental in providing students with a platform to solve pressing problems of various government departments, industries, and organizations.
