MVJ College of Engineering, Bangalore, had been selected as one of the nodal centres to organize and host Toycathon 2021 – an initiative of the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell, supported by All India Council for Technical Education, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of MSME, Ministry of Textiles and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The inauguration of the Toycathon 2021 at the nodal centre, MVJCE, on 22nd June 2021, was presided by Padma Bhushan Dr. B N Suresh, Chancellor, IIST, Trivandrum. He said ‘Toycathon aims to tap the 1.5 million USD worth Indian toy market, currently dominated by imported toys and games. We can see the influence of Chinese toys not only in our country, but all around the globe. This event must bring innovative ideas to capture the 1.5 billion USD toy industry’.
This was followed by the National Inauguration by the Innovation Cell of the Ministry of Education. At the national inauguration, Prof. Anil Sahasrabudhe, AICTE Chairman, Shri Upendra Prasad Singh, Secretary – Ministry of Textiles, Shri Amit Khare, Secretary – Higher Education and Shri Sanjay Dhotre, Minister of State for Communications, addressed the participants. The Chief Guest for this occasion was Smt. Smriti Irani, Hon’ble Minister of Textiles and Minister for Women and Child Development. Around 1,32,969 participants had registered for Toycathon 2021; 17,770 ideas were received and 2471 teams were part of the grand finale.
The participants in Toycathon were encouraged to design toys, using eco-friendly, indigenous, non-toxic, recycled materials, that can be used and enjoyed by children, including the specially-abled ones, and also by the senior citizens whose motor skills need to be toned up. Toycathon is a process of rediscovering traditional Indian toys. We cannot underestimate their role in pedagogy also, as they can be used to teach difficult concepts in Math, Sciences and the Indian Languages.
11 Teams Participated for Grand Finale organized in Digital Mode From MVJ College of Engineering Nodal Centre
| Sl.No | Idea_ID | Category | Track | Team_Name | Team_Leader_Name | Theme |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7025 | Digital (L3) | 3 | InspireMinds- Live Smart | Sachin S Revankar | Fitness and Sport |
| 2 | 15012 | Digital | 1 | Ramanujan Avenger | G Sree Yasasvi | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 3 | 7949 | Digital (L3) | 1 | Game Changers | Rahul Tawri | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 4 | 4002 | Digital (L3) | 1 | VJV 2 | KANIKA KOCHAR | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 5 | 4522 | Digital (L3) | 1 | Class 9 Omega Team 2 | Vidushi Mishra | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 6 | 17029 | Digital | 2 | Dharohar | Akarshan agrawal | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 7 | 16402 | Digital | 2 | Toytanic | Rashmi Sahu | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 8 | 9872 | Digital (L3) | 2 | The Rage | Harsh Jain | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 9 | 14172 | Digital | 3 | Kavade | Sreeranjini GS | Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos |
| 10 | 10229 | Digital (L3) | 1 | VARSHA | Juhi Naik | Learning, Education and Schooling |
| 11 | 16836 | Digital | 2 | SEHAS | Harshita Sarathe | Learning, Education and Schooling |
| 12 | 135 | Digital | 3 | Sattva | Neelacantan | Learning, Education and Schooling |
| 13 | 15387 | Digital | 1 | Team navodaya | Aryan soni | Out of the box, creative and logical thinking |
The toys and games that were presented at the Toycathon were designed to build social values and character in children, enhance their emotional intelligence, develop sequential thinking and problem-solving skills, inculcate empathy for every form of life, and even sensitize children on child abuse. The Innovation Cell of the Ministry of Education had arranged sessions on topics like what are the elements that need to be considered to design a toy, how to choose the proper material, Design Thinking for a toy etc.
Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi interacted with some participants at some of the Nodal centres on 24th June 2021 at 11 am.
At the MVJCE nodal centre, 11 teams participated in the Toycathon and developed many interesting board games. A card game to learn Sanskrit, board games for kids to learn about good nutrient foods and junk foods, games to teach good behaviour, how to balance chemical reactions, the difference between acute and obtuse angles, and how to read time in a clock, to name a few. Ancient games like Chowkabara Navakankari, Tiger and Goat, Chaturvimshathi Amrith Vish which used to be played by Indian children and adults too, in days of yore, were also presented by the participants. Some participants designed a kit containing multiple games.
There were two winners from the MVJCE Nodal Centre among the 117 winners across India. One of them was Team Sattva represented by Mr. Neelacantan, who developed a Sanskrit card game to learn Sanskrit. This 30-minute game has 5000+ combos. The other winner was Team Dharohar represented by Mr Akarshan Agarwal, who designed a board game portraying the endeavours of Lord Rama to retrieve Seetha Devi from Lanka.
Mr. Akarshan Agrawal , Team Dharohar , Winner Toycathon 2021
On 26th June 2021, the winners at the MVJCE nodal centre were honoured during the Valedictory session which was presided by Dr. B N Raghunandnan, Advisor to Director, IISc., Bengaluru. In his address, Dr. Raghunandan said, “This Toycathon has the potential to revolutionize the MSME sector related to the toy industry. It has inculcated the culture of competition and innovation among our youth, and that in turn, will boost the local manufacturing of toys for the modern age, inspired by the tradition of our motherland.”