Bangalore, 3rd April 2019: A class XI student of Inventure Academy of Bangalore Kaushik Kunal Singh has been felicitated at the 9th Annual Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards (SOCA) hosted by DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance Co. Ltd. He has received the award for his innovative mobile app that uses technologies to help farmers self-diagnose crop diseases. Programme Ambassador, Saina Nehwal, Olympic Medalist, and Former World No.1 Badminton Player, presented Kaushik with a silver medallion and a certificate of achievement.
The Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards is a school-level recognition programme for volunteer community service. It is an extension of the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, the largest youth recognition programme in the United States. India is the 8th country outside of the United States to conduct this Awards programme. Other countries are Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Ireland, China, Brazil, and Poland. Over the last 9 years, more than 40,000 students have applied for these awards.
Kaushik’s app helps farmers in identifying the diseases and in getting solutions instantly and accurately with a mobile app by photographing affected plant parts. Plant images are analyzed by Cloud-based AI algorithms accessible over a cellular network. The AI model continuously learns from user uploaded images and expert suggestions to enhance its accuracy. Farmers can also interact with local experts through the platform A web interface allows experts to perform disease analytics with geographical visualizations.
“Crop diseases are a threat to food security. It not only reduces the production and quality of food but also produces toxins that create serious health problems for consumers. As per the estimates, around 50% of field crops are lost to pathogens and pests in our country, causing huge losses to farmers. To help farmers in identifying the crop diseases, I have designed an end-to-end solution which they can use for identifying diseases and getting solutions, instantly and accurately. Through this platform, farmers can also interact with local experts. The solution has already been deployed at the largest agricultural universities in India.” said Kaushik Kunal Singh.
Addressing the finalists at the awards ceremony, Mr. Anoop Pabby, MD & CEO, DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance Co. Ltd. said, “Globally, leadership development through volunteer community service projects is the central idea behind the Spirit of Community Awards (SOCA). It is a recognition for the young volunteers who have made a difference in society through their path-breaking community work. This year in India, we witnessed the brightest young minds from the best of schools in India present their projects in the fields of agriculture, healthcare, education, artificial intelligence, technology, water conservation, women hygiene, clean energy, LGBT issues, and social entrepreneurship. These passionate students went beyond their means, to make the world around them a better place and create change that matters.”
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Programme Ambassador, Saina Nehwal, Olympic Medalist, and Former World No.1 Badminton Player said, “I am extremely proud to be a part of the ‘Spirit of Community Awards’ for the third consecutive year. I truly believe that children are our country’s future and they should be allowed to unleash their true potential and freedom to execute their ideas so that they are able to contribute towards building a stronger and developed India. I would like to congratulate all the participants and wish them a brighter and promising life ahead.”
The prestigious awards programme introduced in 2010 is the India chapter of the Spirit of Community Awards, the largest youth recognition programme in the United States based exclusively on volunteer service.
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About the Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards (SOCA)
The Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards is a school-level recognition programme for volunteer community service. The objective is to encourage the efforts of school children who’ve made a difference - and inspired countless others to consider how they can contribute to their communities.
The awards programme is an extension of the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, the largest youth recognition programme in the United States based exclusively on volunteer service. Since its inception in 1995 by Prudential Financial, Inc. (PFI), the U.S. programme has officially recognized more than 125,000 young people for their meaningful contributions towards their communities.
India is the 8th country outside of the United States to conduct this Awards programme. Other participating countries include PFI subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Ireland, China, Brazil, and Poland.
This awards programme was introduced in India in 2010 and are open to students in classes VI to XII. Since then, the initiative has grown in strength and stature and has witnessed a stupendous rise in participation from students across the country. Over the last 9 years, more than 40,000 students have applied for these awards and from among them, 700+ have been formally recognized for their outstanding community service work.
About DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance
DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance is a joint venture between DHFL Investments Limited (DIL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd. (DHFL), one of India’s largest housing finance companies and Prudential International Insurance Holdings, Ltd. (PIIH), a fully owned subsidiary of Prudential Financial, Inc. (PFI), a financial services leader headquartered in the U.S. DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance represents the coming together of two renowned financial services organizations with a legacy of business excellence spread over decades.
DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance has a pan India presence through multiple distribution channels which have been customized to address the specific insurance needs of diverse customer segments. The Company is committed to providing protection and quality financial advice to its customers. For further information on the Company, please visit https://www.dhflpramerica.com