How AI is helping health workers bridge the follow-up gap in India’s fight against TB
“Woh TB vaale aa gaye (Look, the TB people have arrived!).” This is how Dr. Monika Kaura (District TB Officer, Panchkula) and her team of health workers are addressed in different areas of the Panchkula district (Haryana, India) during their field visits for tuberculosis advocacy, communication and mobilisation. This moniker is a testament to the […]
Simplifying Newborn Anthropometry—One Smartphone Video at a Time
On most days, Sanjita Paswan, an Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) at a Primary Health Center (PHC) in Dabhel, Daman, has to carry a bulky weighing machine over her shoulder and climb up and down multiple floors. She uses the weighing scale as well as an infantometer to take anthropometric measurements of newborns in the […]
Vaachan Samiksha: Leveraging AI to Bridge the Literacy Divide
For Hetal Kumari, a language teacher at Denapura Primary School, the first two class periods of the day have undergone a remarkable transformation since July 2023. Her school is one of the nearly 30,000 public schools in Gujarat to adopt Vaachan Samiksha as part of their teaching and learning practices in the classroom. “Earlier we […]
Empowering Millions of Indian Farmers with Instant AI Chatbot Support
For millions of farmers across India, timely access to financial support through the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme is essential to meet their needs. The scheme disburses ₹6,000 annually to over 90 million farmers, providing vital economic relief. However, managing large volumes of farmer queries related to payment status, registration, and e-KYC—amongst others—manually […]
Community Health Officers Lead the Charge for Statewide AI-based TB Screening
In the remote, hilly districts of Lunglei and Aizawl in Mizoram, an AI application is playing a vital role in the state’s efforts to combat tuberculosis. Mizoram, which saw a rise in TB-related mortality in 2023, is also contending with a significant number of multi-drug resistant cases. Multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) is resistant to first-line […]
Beyond the Blind Spots: Using AI to Prevent Blindness in Diabetics
Retinopathy is a serious eye condition that affects people with diabetes. It damages the blood vessels in the retina, making it one of the leading causes of preventable blindness worldwide. Diabetic retinopathy develops gradually and patients often don’t notice any symptoms until their vision is already at risk. Timely detection and prompt treatment by an […]
Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2024: How AI is bringing India’s young achievers to the fore
Every year, the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) seeks to honor young Indians who achieve extraordinary milestones in fields ranging from innovation to sports. Yet, for many deserving children, particularly in underserved and remote communities, the path to recognition remains elusive. Lack of awareness, connectivity, or access often means their achievements are not sufficiently […]
Fight Against School Dropouts: Gujarat Rolls Out AI-Powered Early Warning System
How to stop a student from dropping out of school? For decades, the answer has been broad, one-size-fits-all policies that often fail to address the complex interplay of social, economic, health, and academic factors. This reactive approach meant that countless students have been left behind. To solve this, a new model of governance is needed—one […]