Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Ignited Minds: 20 innovators who are changing our lives

Sheikh Jehangir cannot read or write, hasn't been trained in any vocational skill and started working at the age of 11 to support his family. Yet, the 50-year-old car painter in Jalgaon, Maharashtra, has a patent to his name, and has applied for a second one. His latest innovation, a scooter-powered flourmill created to help his wife grind wheat even during long power cuts, inspired an invention featured in the monster hit 3 Idiots. Jehangir's shop was removed from the roadside in a cleanliness drive and even though he was promised a new one by the government, he has not received it yet. What's more, when Jehangir applied to a public sector for a loan to support his innovation, he was refused one without a collateral of Rs 15 lakh.