Aryan Singh, an 18-year-old from Kota, won the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar for his innovation, ‘AgRobot’ — an AI-powered rover designed to support farmers.
Raised in a farming family, Aryan saw firsthand the struggles of farmers, from crop failure to financial hardships. “I wanted to create something affordable, compact, and capable of solving more than one problem for the farmer,” he explains.
Aryan noticed that many farmers couldn’t afford expensive machinery. This inspired him to find a solution.
During the COVID-19 lockdown, while Aryan was in Class 10, he designed the prototype of AgRobot. “Thanks to the lockdown, I had plenty of time to read up about things and design my model,” he shares.
Later, he pursued a BTech in AI and robotics, using college labs and resources to refine his project. “The resources and knowledgeable professors were invaluable,” he says.
In 2023, after three years of research, he successfully developed the prototype of AgRobot. During this period, he also founded a company called ‘Mera Saathi Pvt Ltd’.
To bring AgRobot to life, he sought financial backing from ‘iStart’, a Rajasthan government initiative for startups. They offered him a place to work, lab facilities, and guidance to help him grow his idea into a reality.
Similarly, Aryan reached out to the Atal Innovation Mission and his college, which provided essential research space and guidance from professors for the development of AgRobot.
AgRobot uses AI and the Internet of Things (IoT) to allow farmers to control it remotely, making farming more efficient and accessible.
The device runs entirely on solar power and includes a piezoelectric panel to generate electricity from pressure, ensuring uninterrupted operation without any external power source.
AgRobot garnered attention at the Krishi Mela in Kota, with hundreds of farmers visiting Aryan's stall. “It feels surreal, but I am glad I could bring such an innovation to the farmers,” he says.
In November 2024, Aryan began commercialising the robot in Kota, aiming to make the innovative technology more accessible to farmers.