CU Student develops an app based battery operated cycle

Jai Chachra - A Neoteric Generation Entrepreneur

& his innovation ‘Just Charge’-an app based  battery operated cycle

Entrepreneurship is essentially the philosophy of an innovating mind, a nouveau culture and  a creative mindset.  It is the ability to create an impact in whatever one does in an enterprise in the face of constraints, risks and ambiguity. And this is precisely how the journey of Jai Chachra started.  He joined Chandigarh University as a student of graduation in Computer Science Engineering (with specialisation in Cloud Computing). As a freshman in the very first year, he was pulled up by one of the faculty members for not carrying any register or pen to write notes.  To admonish him, the teacher went on to hand him the cap of a pen to write with. This instead, sparked the thinking terrain of his mind and Jai came up with a unique innovation of a 2cms pen that could be worn on a finger.  This wearable pen is shaped like a ring and can write 500 pages in one cartridge. All because he does not wish to carry a pen around – so just wear it!  It would take 2 to 3 days to train a person to practice writing with it. This innovative product is today a boon for the differently abled persons who may have lost a finger or a hand or is using his feet for writing! Jai’s patented ‘Finger Wearable Pen’ takes the pain out of writing for those who may not have the essential appendages for writing. 

With this start, Jai went on to innovate an ‘Accidental Survival Kit - Rakshak’. This idea came up because way back in 2017 only cars costing upwards of 18 lakhs had airbags safety option. So, using an enhanced version of micro control units, he designed a system whereby a cars driver seat area was sensitised to alcohol vapors. Thus, when a driver who has consumed alcohol wishes to drive a car, this device would apply an AI based system and the car would be restricted to travel upto 18kms per hour only! Of course he is the patent holder for this product too!

By the time he completes 3^nd year of graduation, Jai already has 5 patents in his pocket - all thanks to his mentor and life coach Dr Sanjeet Singh who has been handholding him, egging him on and ensuring he does not buckle under challenges.   His dream project “Pet-It” was literally evolved in his dream where he visualised himself being recognised as one of the Fortune 500 qualifiers for a ‘Pet Tracking solution’. To follow this dream he actually evolved, patented and popularised “Pet-It” – a smart pet ecosystem that can be attached to a  pets collar. This helps for scheduling vet visits, food timing, and any other activities that need to be followed for the pet. All pet lovers find this a unique and pet care friendly product. With several companies in the US chasing this product, Jai is completely grounded in the knowledge that all entrepreneurship is not always about running a business.

Jai strongly believes that every problem has a solution and applies this philosophy to evolve products as a solution to existing problems. Thus, Jai was never inclined for a ‘placement drive’ nor did he join the CSE programme with Chandigarh University to be placed with a corporate big-wig. As a self-motivated innovator, he feels that today, no one accepts you because of your visiting card.  You have to build your reputation and its public acceptance step by step.  Infact, no entrepreneur starts with infinite resources. They are just persistent in their resolve.

This resolve led him to innovate ‘Just Charge’ – an app based battery operated cycle. This was aimed as a solution for hostel students on the campus who have to walk extensive distances during a day, from their hostel to their department - to the administration block and to the dispensary and back to hostel. All this walking in the Indian summers was very disconcerting  for Jai and he researched alternatives like ordinary bicycles, electric skate boards (as seen in the popular movie ‘Koi Mil Gaya’) with a handle and hover boards from the perspective of affordability, usage over uneven terrain, the weight it may be able to transport and battery life.

As a sophomore at the university, he reached out to the seniors and peers in the department of mechanical engineering to help him shape his innovation. The entire journey was  replete with changing, making adjustments, accepting errors and modifying by the minute.

The entrepreneur in Jai accepted that he will not get it right always so he reset his course correction to bounce back higher. He manufactured 10 units of his ‘Just Charge’ and started talking to resorts if they wished to offer independence to their guests instead of golf carts and the idea clicked!  He has currently offered to manufacture initial stock for the hostel students of his alma mater. He will further take this up with universities spread over sprawling vast spaces.

Jai keeps re-imagining  possibilities. He is not waiting for a public tag or an honorary badge -  he just keeps persisting in his efforts with the larger purpose of solution finding.