Design is in

Education needs experiments. In India, especially, we need something entirely different. Digital StudyHall (DSH) is on an experimental trail. They describe their approach as an education equivalent of Netflix + YouTube + Kazaa.

Live classes by the best grassroots teachers are recorded on video and then stored on computer discs, which are distributed to rural schools. Education experts are working in tandem with computer scientists to explore pedagogic approaches in the rural context. 

Firstly, DSH is focusing on creating a video database of everything. (usually in the local language) Going a step ahead, they have structured the sequencing of these videos to fit into the current state board curriculums so that any school can use it. Some of the best teachers have recorded their discourses. What they have done here is go beyond the flash-ware and slide-ware kind of modules. This approach believes that teachers are still a prime agent in the learning environment. Although the output is aligned to the syllabus, the teachers have re-interpreted the syllabus in terms of interactivity.

Secondly, DSH adopts a decentralized network. Although content is produced and disseminated for local use, it is shared with the other towns and cities. The videos are recorded in the contextual learning environment instead of recording it in schools in cities. The relevance of content is key in creating this database.

Thirdly, the school needs a tv, dvd player and an inverter. They know that children can't learn by just watching videos. They have adopted mediation-based pedagogy. It means that there is a mediator, usually a teacher, between the students and the TV. The mediator pauses the video and engages children in activities, games, even a q&a session.

Lastly, the web2.0 application that they have developed doesn't require physcial infrastructure. The computer discs are transported by the postal system.

Digital StudyHall works best in the Indian context. It is striving to break new ground in schools across India.

By Sanjay Basavaraju

Charkha in context

Gandhi believed that Charkha as a tool can make people self-sufficient. He may not have thought that, one day, the very same tool can actually generate power. Yes, e-charkha is a unique device to spin yarn and also generate electricity.

Using this device for one hour can provide upto 4 hours of light output through a highly efficient LED lamp. A radio can also be played with the stored electricity. The e-charkha is a brainchild of 48-year-old R S Hiremath of Bangalore. It does not resemble traditional charkhas, but it is a hand-operated spinning wheel. it was formally launched by President Pratibha Patil in 2007, the innovation has won several awards including a national award for best innovation in the Khadi field.

In a rural context, where power cuts are common, this device is appropriate. The charkha generates 6-9 watts of power. The charkha stores power using a maintenance free lead acid battery. The charkha is priced at Rs. 5,000 per piece for a minimum order of 500. India's Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) plans to induct two lakh pieces of e-charkha at Khadi weaving centers across the country. "Its popularity is increasing with time. It is not only more productive but also helps the user light his home," said a KVIC official in a Mid-Day article.

Gandhi once said, "In my dream, in my sleep, while eating, I think of the spinning wheel. The spinning wheel is my sword. To me it is the symbol of India's liberty. I would make the wheel the centre around which all other activities will revolve." Some technologists believe that e-charkha isn't anything like Gandhi's Charkha and they argue that innovation has replaced tradition. That might be the case, but 
e-charkha finds its place in today's context. The charkha was developed in cooperation with a Bangalore based firm — Flexitron, which is now involved in its commercial production as well.

The e-charkha is one of those very few designs born out of the Indian design ecosystem. Watch this clip from IBN Live.

By Sanjay Basavaraju

There are few Indians who have never traveled by train in their lives. Train journeys form an intrinsic part of any Indian's life. When you were young you visited your grandparents by train, or went to your hometown in the summer vacations by train, you went on school or college trips by train, in the not-so-luxurious second class. Train travel was a way of life by itself. In the last five years things have changed rapidly with the introduction of many private airlines flying the domestic sector, but trains still transport the bulk of the people. And in a country of one billion people, that is definitely a lot of people.

The Indian Rail network, is one of the things the British left behind in India, (as they couldn't possibly pack it and take it back with them) along with the education system and a unique architectural style known as Indo-Saracenic. A plan for a rail network was proposed by the British as early as 1832, and the first passenger train ran between Bombay and Thane in 1853. The Railways were set up by the British primarily to fulfill their economic interests in the sub-continent. A vast rail network would serve them well for transport of goods across the country, and to and from the ports. This purpose the rail network served well, but it also had other far-reaching consequences unforeseen by the British. As people had greater mobility, they traveled freely across the country, and over time this led to the rise of nationalism, and the struggle for Indian Independence. In some ways the railways truly helped in unifying the nation.

The development of railways is also seen as the forerunner of the overall economic development of a country. Karl Marx said,"You cannot maintain a net of railways over an immense country without introducing all those industrial processes necessary to meet the immediate and current wants of railway locomotion, and out of which there must grow the application of machinery to those branches of industry not immediately connected with railways. The railway system will therefore become, in India, truly the forerunner of modern industry." And this it did.

However, Gandhi was concerned about the role of the railways, for though it led to better communication and the rise of nationalism, he felt that the railways were a "burden to the village people", "simply sucking the village and leaving it absolutely dry". He deplored the pathetic conditions under which the poor traveled, as they had to travel in third class which was filthy and over-crowded. He also felt the railways were killing the simple and self-sufficient structure of village India, as well as destroying its gentle pace.

The aspect of 'sucking the village dry', may have arisen from the rivalry between railways and irrigation, as to which was more essential for the progress of a country. Each was offered as a solution against the recurring famines of that time. The two competed for allocation of famine resources, with railways finally winning hands down. The total expenditure on irrigation amounted to Rs 430 million, the amount spent on railways was Rs 3590 million.   

Railways gave a push to British products, facilitating exports, while destroying many local and indigenous industries. Many Indian leaders at that time, and not just the conservatives, were skeptical of the railways, as they did not resolve the weaknesses that were crippling the country. Irrigation was the key to solve many of India's problems, as it still is today. Irrigation canals could serve as transport and support the rail network. By ignoring irrigation, India pays a heavy price for progress till today. The railways have given the country a lot, but the key issues of rural poverty, migration to cities, water shortage, a disabled agricultural economy, and lack of local industry still remain unsolved.

Still, the Indian railways have come a long way, and we cannot deny the amazing network and the scale at which it operates. The Indian Railways is the largest employer in the world, employing more than 1.4 million people. It is the most extensive rail network, with the one of the longest lengths of track. Today you can book your ticket online (yes its working well, though there is a lot of potential to improve the navigation, interface and overall look), and this has made the life of passengers much easier, as you don't have to wait in meandering queues, or depend on travel agents.

Though many Indians, who can afford to, are traveling by flight now, it is a different experience to travel by train in India. Though the logo of the Indian Railways borders on boring and outdated, the train journey will be anything but that. Trains tell the story of a country, and like India, a journey by train makes sure all your senses are alive and over-active. It may be hot and smelly, there may be a loud and talkative family playing card games and stuffing you with snacks all around you, there may be children begging to shine your shoes for a few rupees, there may be a man selling cold drinks crying "Trinks! thanda Trinks!", when you look out of the window, there will be a view that just takes your breath away.

By Armeen Kapadia and Sanjay Basavaraju