Swinging innovation: 66-yr-old develops unique generator

Tuesday, March 21, 2006 (Jamshedpur):
Vijay Narayan Sharma lives in Jamshedpur and is all of 66. At an age when most people think of putting up their boots, he on the other hand has been swinging in innovative ideas. Born in Bihar, this high school dropout spent the early years of his life struggling to make both ends meet.It was around the time he landed a regular job with SAIL in Orissa that he realised that his interest in electrical gadgetry could be put to better use.Sharma has literally devised a swing generator or jhula generator, which quite simply converts the mechanical energy of the swinging action into usable electrical energy.Answer to power cutsThe innovator claims that this prototype can generate enough electricity to light more than 10 bulbs at the same time."I was working on it for a long time. Though I succeeded only once, the formula worked," says Sharma.Though the idea and blueprint had been ready with him for a while, Sharma had to experiment with various materials within his limited means before he hit upon the correct one to make the generator parts."We all support him in all his attempts," says Sharma's wife.What's more, in honour of his very supportive family, he has named the innovation Jhula Sharma generator."It would have been nice if we got some monetary help," says Amar Nath Sharma, Vijay's son.In this age and time when load shedding and power cuts are the rule of the day, innovators like Vijay Narayan Sharma and innovations like the Jhula Sharma generator may well be the answer!