PM Modi talks innovation at Hackathon
PM Modi talks innovation at Hackathon.IANS

Narendra Modi participated in the Smart India Hackathon 2020 on Saturday, August 1, in which the Prime Minister said, "National Education Policy 2020 announced recently has been framed keeping in mind the aspirations of the youth of 21st century of our country."

PM Modi also heard about the inventions of students during his interaction through video conferencing with the finalists starting fro

PM Modi also heard about the inventions of students during his interaction through video conferencing with the finalists starting from reusable sanitary napkins to a real-time facial recognition system.

A student who is working on a biodegradable sanitary napkin, spoke to the Prime Minister. PM Modi said that the government is already providing sanitary pads at Re 1 each. "The introduction of reusable sanitary napkins will be of great help to the girls. I congratulate you for being so thoughtful," Modi said.

"21st century is the era of knowledge. This is the time for increased focus on learning, research, innovation. This is exactly what India's National Education Policy 2020 does," PM Modi said while addressing the students at the grand finale of the event.

"We are focussing on the quality of education in India. Our attempts have been to make our education system the most advance and modern for students of our country," the PM said.

Modi stressed the need for AI in policing

A student from MLR Institute of Technology talked about real-time facial recognition. The student informed that even if one covers his or her face, Artificial Intelligence will recognise the eyes, the space between the eyes and nose which does not change. Modi stressed the need of AI in policing to make it interactive.

Much of agrarian India's fate is sealed by the proper predictions of rain. A finalist told the Prime Minister, during the interaction, that with the help of satellites, a model will be prepared which will predict rainfall. Modi appreciated the effort saying that it will help India's farmers.

'Young India is filled with talent'

The Prime Minister, who asked questions to a few finalists during his interaction with them on Saturday, tweeted on Friday that, "Young India is filled with talent! The grand finale of the Smart India Hackathon 2020 showcases this very spirit of innovation and excellence."

The Smart India Hackathon is a nationwide initiative to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems faced daily. It inculcates a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving, says the government.

Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank announced that the winner will get a Rs 1 lakh cash prize.

The first round of Smart India Hackathon 2020 saw the participation of more than 4.5 lakh students. More than 10,000 students are competing to solve 243 problem statements from 37 central government departments, 17 state governments and 20 industries.

(With agency inputs)