Nitesh Kumar flies his quadrotor helicopter in Patna on Saturday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Patna, July 7: Joy Lobo of 3 Idiots had failed to impress his college director with his futuristic helicopter, but Nitesh Kumar is on cloud nine as his chopper has earned him kudos from his institute and the Bihar government as well.

It’s an irony though that Nitesh, a second year mechanical engineering student at Chandigarh Engineering College, Mohali, had drawn inspiration for his helicopter from the flying machine of Lobo, who, in the film, had committed suicide after the director of the institute rejected his innovation.

Today, the youth from Jhanjharpur in Madhubani gave a demonstration of his quadrotor (propelled by four rotors) helicopter, called An Heart Wing, before Bihar rural development minister Nitish Mishra.

“He has designed and operated a quadrotor helicopter. It has a wireless camera and can be used for navigation using global positioning system (GPS). He has achieved this feat in his third semester. Normally, four or five students do a project in the seventh semester,” reads the appreciation letter issued by R. Sham, the head of mechanical engineering department, Chandigarh Engineering College.

The helicopter is GPS-enabled along with three wireless cameras. It can reach a height of 200m and cover 3km in four minutes. The two cameras, fixed atop the chopper, can stream live pictures within a radius of 100m, which can be seen on a laptop or TV. The third fixed beneath can take still pictures.

Nitesh said it took him a year to complete the project at a cost of Rs 1.20 lakh. He added the equipment were imported from the US, Hongkong and Thailand.

Nitesh said it could be used during earthquake, floods or rescue operations besides using it for surveillance in Naxalite-hit areas.

The minister said: “The youth comes from a mediocre family and his father is a farmer. With his capability and talent, he can do a lot for the state and country provided he be given proper guidance.”