DSGMC-run schools to install Pepe robots to promote hygiene among students
Costing Rs 7,000, the robot will be mounted on the wall above the handwashing facility that would remind the students to wash their hands.
The coronavirus epidemic and the loss of lives in China has set off warning signals across the world, including India. While the country had three reported cases in Kerala, the virus has been contained by the prompt action of the health department in Kerala.
In this scenario, people are adopting different ways to stay safe, by wearing masks and practising extreme hygiene.
Image: Edex Live
To promote hygienic practices among children, nineteen co-educational schools run by the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee in Delhi have installed a robot to remind students to wash their hands after using the washroom.
DSGMC chief Manjinder Singh Sirsa said,
"DSGMC will survey each school's needs and physical layout and then construct and install the best options for each school so as it could facilitate maximum students.. Also, the entire process will be completed very soon on a priority basis, reports New Indian Express.
Named Pepe, the robot will be mounted on the wall above the handwashing facility that would remind the students to wash, while interacting with them. The robot costs Rs 7,000 and reaches 20,000 students in total.
The robot has been developed by researchers from the University of Glasgow in collaboration with Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University in India.
Speaking to Hindustan Times, Manjinder said,
“An exclusive mobile app will be developed for monitoring the success of the programme. Schoolteachers will take photos of hygiene practices adopted by children on the campus and post it on the mobile application regularly.
He added,
"School kids below 10 years from marginal sections of society who are most affected by poor sanitation and hygiene will be especially targeted under the programme."
Also, the teachers will click pictures of the school premises, including hand-washing units, toilets, and cleanliness of classrooms. This is being done to inculcate the habit of hand washing and hygiene among the students.
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