A file picture of the bamboo fan

March 1: He is a small businessman with big ideas, an innovator without much formal education. Blessed with an innovative mind, Nipul Bezbora, who runs a small grocery shop in the city, has developed a high-efficiency bamboo ceiling fan, which experts claim is better than the usual ones.

The Grassroots Innovations Augmentation Networks (Gian), Northeast, is trying to improve upon the innovation and make it commercially viable. Its manager, Lalmuanzuala Chinza, said: “We are in touch with General Electric (GE) to improvise and get a brand name”.

The fan has 12 bamboo blades, designed in two rows of eight and four, for maximum circulation of air.

It was a huge draw at the recently-concluded National Science Day exhibition at Don Bosco School.

“If everything goes as planned, the fan could be launched this season itself. Since it will cost less than the usual one, it should have a market of its own,” Chinza said.

Thirty-year-old Bezbora, who hails from Jorhat, has received education only till class IV. He now lives in the city with his younger brother Bipul, who has been his assistant whenever required.

Besides the electrical gadget, other innovations which attracted attention at the science model workshop were countable calculators, planetary compass, innovative zero head water turbine, bio-degradable torch made of bamboo, floating water wheel for harnessing energy from rivers and a bicycle with shock-absorber.

The award-winning bamboo bicycle by Dodhi Pathak was also on display at the science fair.

The fair also brought into the limelight innovations in the field of beauty care and health. One of the attractions was Dulal Choudhury’s beauty care umbrella which was designed with his new innovation of soft muga silk and under the guidance of Gian-NE.

This umbrella, unlike the available ones, helps protect the skin from ultra-violet radiation up to 85 per cent. The innovator claims that it provides a glow to the user’s skin. Patent has already been filed for the innovation as well as for the product on behalf of the innovator. Gian-NE is mediating in the technology transfer agreement.

A few other herbal products for the treatment of alopecia areata (common disease resulting in hair loss), pre-medicated bandages for bone-fracture and backache, herbal pan masala and gutkha and mosquito repellent are also on display at the national science day workshop.

The primary objective of Gian, which was established on January 26, 2002, is to link up innovations, investment and enterprise. It affects the transition of an innovation into a product and later into enterprise with inputs of formal science and technology, design, project planning and management, finance and marketing intelligence.

The Gian has organised several exhibitions of grassroots innovations at the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati. Three Gians — Gian-West, Gian-North and Gian-NE — provide support for grassroots innovations and traditional knowledge of the respective regions. Their aim is to sustain the spirit of innovation, encourage experimentation and nurture creativity at the grassroots level.

Gian-NE has opened two centres in the region. One is at the North East Regional Institute of Science and Technology (Nerist), Arunachal Pradesh, and the other at Tezpur University, Assam. They have also received some enquires for opening chapters at Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Meghalaya.