Media Release

Mangaluru, Oct 22: Team HiveLink from St Joseph Engineering College, Vamanjoor, secured 1st place in the 8th National Social Enterprise Idea Challenge, along with a cash prize of seventy thousand rupees. The event was held on October 18 at Azim Premji University, Bengaluru.

Team HiveLink was one of the top 15 teams competing in the grand finale, alongside participants from prestigious institutions such as IIM Udaipur, IIM Tiruchirappalli, IIM Visakhapatnam, Symbiosis Institute of Technology Pune, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, T A Pai Management Institute Manipal, Jamia Millia Islamia, Mahindra United World College, and Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Noida.

HiveLink is a TRL 5 beehive monitoring solution developed by an interdisciplinary team at SJEC. Now in its second phase, the team is creating a predictive model to address challenges like absconding, swarming, and pest detection, with the potential to boost honey production. The product monitors a honey bee’s hive in real time to produce actionable insights, eliminating the need for skilled labor-intensive inspection.

Cost-effective and seamlessly integrated, the add-on device empowers beekeepers to monitor critical challenges such as swarming, absconding, pest infections, hive falls, and theft through the HiveLink app interface. Notably, the aadhaar-enabled mobile application aligns with the central government's sweet revolution initiative, providing policymakers with invaluable insights into modern beekeeping practices.

Team HiveLink comprised Vyasa M Nayak and Joywin Bennis from the department of computer science and engineering, Joshua Q Albuquerque and Lisha D S from the department of electronics & communication, and Vaibhav Salian from the department of artificial intelligence & machine learning, under the mentorship of Glenson Toney, assistant professor at the department of electronics & communication, and Ajwin D’Souza, maintenance engineer at Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts Pvt Ltd.

Another team from St Joseph Engineering College, team Aikhya, was also among the top 15 finalists at this prestigious national event. Team Aikhya, which included Prerana Prakash, Simone D’Souza, Sweekrithi K S, and Sinchana B R from the department of electronics & communication, presented an innovative, technology-driven solution aimed at reducing the maternal mortality rate through collaboration with Ashakaryakarthas, ANMs, and Primary Health Centres. They were guided by Glenson Toney and Dr Aldrin C Vas, assistant professors at the department of electronics & communication.

The idea challenge is the flagship annual event of the social enterprise cell at APU, designed to give students from across the country an opportunity to explore social entrepreneurship and share their innovative ideas in a competitive environment. The 8th edition of the social enterprise idea challenge saw over 400 registrations and 150 idea submissions.

Team Aikhya and team HiveLink are on a mission to create technology-driven solutions that address critical social challenges, bringing them a step closer to realizing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.