The stage is set for the Grand Finale of the Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2024, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled to interact with student innovators on Wednesday through video conferencing. The event will see participation from over 1,300 student teams as they tackle real-world challenges in one of India’s largest innovation competitions.
This year’s SIH follows its tradition of empowering student teams to tackle problem statements provided by various Ministries, Departments, and industries or submit their unique ideas under the Student Innovation Category. These problem statements are aligned with 17 themes of national significance, ranging from healthcare and sustainability to education, agriculture, and disaster management.
Some of the standout challenges for this year include ISRO’s task to improve the visibility of darker regions on the Moon, the Ministry of Jal Shakti’s challenge to develop a real-time water quality monitoring system for the Ganga using advanced technologies, and the Ministry of AYUSH’s idea to create a smart AI-powered yoga mat.
This year’s hackathon is the largest since its inception, with over 250 problem statements submitted by 54 government departments, state bodies, PSUs, and private industries. The growth has been staggering, with institute-level hackathons witnessing a 150% surge compared to last year, increasing from around 900 in 2023 to 2,247 in 2024.
At the grassroots level, more than 86,000 teams participated, with nearly 49,000 teams advancing to the national rounds after being shortlisted by their respective institutions. Each team comprises six students and two mentors, forming a collective force of young minds working to develop practical solutions for real-world challenges.
The Software Edition will run continuously for 36 hours, while the Hardware Edition will span five days, concluding on December 15.
