Student moots idea of stirring motorists' conscience to check pollution

Idea is to add a display next to odometer, where monitor can send an alert that the driver is wasting fuel and causing pollution

The pollution caused by motorists idling their vehicles at short halts or red lights has prompted a school student to come up with an idea which, if implemented, could stir their conscience with pithy messages and protect the environment.

Vehicular pollution is a major contributor to overall air pollution as witnessed in the national capital wrapped in a thick blanket of smog which caused respiratory problems and eye irritation.

Priyanka Panda from Bhubaneswar received the 2016 IGNITE Award from the President on Monday for her innovative idea aimed at reducing pollution and saving the environment.

Her basic idea is to add a display next to the odometer, where the monitor can send an alert that the driver is wasting the fuel and causing pollution.

"Most of the time, while travelling, people do not care to turn off the car's engine when at red light or short halts," said Panda.

"This releases harmful pollutants in the air and wastes fuel. So, I thought of ways in which this could be prevented," she said.

She suggests that whenever a vehicle's engine is idling, a message/alert should be displayed next to the odometer.

The space near the odometer could be used to set up a digital screen which would display a warning message that will pull at the rider's conscience.

The messages could be: "You have spoilt two years of a child's life" or something like this to remind people about the damage they are causing to the world, Panda said.

The number of years may be calculated by estimating the amount of pollutants released during that interval of time.

Panda plans to suggest this idea to various vehicle manufacturers. She wants to become a doctor and considers former President APJ Abdul Kalam as her biggest inspiration.