Saving lives through tech innovation:
Divanshu Kumar, Co-founder and CEO, and Moinak Banerjee, Co-founder and Product Head, of Solinas Integrity, are both engineers who recognised that access to basic human needs, such as clean water and sanitation, was still a critical concern for many Indians. Their challenge motivated them to develop technologies that address real-world problems such as manual scavenging.
“Between 2017 and 2021, 330 people tragically lost their lives in India due to hazardous conditions while cleaning sewers and septic tanks,” says Kumar.
“Despite the government’s official abolition of manual scavenging, this practice persists due to societal structures and a lack of technological solutions. This not only endangers the lives of sanitary workers but also leads to groundwater pollution, manhole overflows and significant public health challenges. Similarly, many key cities face droughts and receive contaminated water, resulting in diseases like cholera,” he explains.
Solinas was launched as a climate-tech start-up dedicated to eliminating hazardous and inhumane practices and improving existing water and sanitation infrastructure through the use of robotics, AI, and sensors. Since its inception the company has seen much success.
Kumar says, “We have executed our innovations in more than 30 Indian cities to revolutionise water and sanitation management. Our Endobot, powered by Swasth AI, has been deployed in over 20 cities, saving more than 700,000 litres of water daily through early defect detection, improving water quality by identifying over 1,000 contamination points and reducing sewer overflows by detecting over 200 blockages.”
The inspiration for launching Solinas Integrity began during Kumar’s final year of his master’s in product design at IIT Madras.
“My final year project received recognition from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for its social innovation. During this time, along with my professors, we envisioned the goal of eradicating the inhumane practice of manual scavenging,” Kumar says.
Having worked closely with sanitary workers and witnessing first-hand the severe hardships they faced, including frequent respiratory issues and skin rashes, an important goal at Solinas Integrity is to eradicate inhumane practices and improve the overall dignity and quality of life for sanitation workers in India.
