Thirteen-year-old B Nitheesh loves tinkering with electronic toys, especially the ones that haul people around. He likes to explore every aspect of his remote-control cars, thanks to the encouragement extended by his parents even if he is unsuccessful in reassembling them back in form. His curiosity to understand cars better has won him top honours at the second HCL Jigsaw “India’s Top Young Problem Solvers’.
Twelve students won prizes at this pan-India event conducted for students from classes VI to IX. The event tests participants on problem-solving and critical-reasoning skills through creative solutions.
Nitheesh, a class VIII student of Devi Academy Secondary School in Valasaravakkam, had to come up with a solution for designing an electric vehicle suitable for extreme weather conditions.
“I was given a case study of a person who had to move from a metro to a desert and it was about how he would adapt his electric vehicle to the new conditions. I spoke about alternative fuels, how one can prevent the car from heating up and also about the types of tyres that can be used,” says Nitheesh, who had two hours to present his ideas through a presentation.
The Alapakkam resident says the meddling with cars had helped him.
“Once a car’s battery wire got disconnected; I opened it up and with a soldiering machine I fixed it,” he says.
At the event, participating students had three rounds to compete in, with teams of three each. “My team mates were from Bengaluru and Mumbai; and working together on a common problem in a virtual mystery room like set-up was a new experience,” he says.
Participants were assessed on their collaborative skills and creativity. The top three teams, consisting of 36 finalists, were shortlisted to compete in the final stage. They had to present their plans to address a real-world case scenario to an expert jury.
Class VI students worked on ‘Smart Cities’, class VII on ‘Future of Shopping’, class VIII on ‘Electrical Vehicle’ and class IX on ‘Creating an Empathetic Healthcare’.
The winning students received prizes and gadgets and a learning opportunity at HCL Engineering and Innovation labs. For details on the next edition of the challenge, visit https://hcljigsaw.com/
