In such tense times when the spread of coronavirus is increasing rapidly across the country, it is important for all of us to abide by precautionary measures to keep ourselves and people around us safe. The Health Ministry had earlier issued a list of precautions against the coronavirus including using face masks, hand sanitizer, maintaining proper hygiene, etc. However, not all people have access to such information.
Hence, to spread more awareness about coronavirus and its precautions, two robots have been employed in Kerala which distribute hand sanitisers, face masks and napkins for people to use, reports Dainik Bhaskar. One of them also has a screen which shows the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) campaign to contain the disease.
The robots have been launched by Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), the government nodal agency for entrepreneurship and incubation activities, reports TOI.
“Robots are crowd pullers, so we can spread our message effectively. They are sharing information about the pandemic,” said Jayakrishnan T, the Founder and CEO of Asimov Robotics, the firm that has developed the two robots.
Kerala Startup Mission has started #Coronavirus awareness campaign using 2 robots in Kochi. Jayakrishnan T,founder&CEO of Asimov Robotics,"Robots are crowd pullers, so we can spread our message effectively. They are distributing hand sanitizers,masks&sharing info about pandemic" pic.twitter.com/XA8uIOEqXo
— ANI (@ANI) March 13, 2020
People on the internet, including Shashi Tharoor, are sharing videos of the robots at work. Many have taken to the comment section to express how impressive it is to see the government take innovative steps to spread awareness regarding coronavirus.
Robots dispensing sanitiser & #COVID2019 advice. In Kerala!! pic.twitter.com/TlBETlxXel
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) March 17, 2020
Meanwhile in Kerala robots wearing masks are distributing sanitizer and masks to guests. #IncredibleIndia in #CoronavirusOutbreak pic.twitter.com/XlkoPQp8dy
— Pankaj Pachauri (@PankajPachauri) March 17, 2020
See the Robot 😬
N praise #Kerala government
Kerala 93% literacy rate 🤔
— Friday Monster (@monster_friday) March 17, 2020
Innovative kerala once again in the forefront. A startup has introduced robots dispensing sanitizers, mask & even information abt covid-19. They have been installed at tvm airport. pic.twitter.com/wmnFPQh5AG
— Despicable Mallu (@despicableMallu) March 16, 2020
The govt is doing so much and yet people are absconding from quarantine!! Cooperate people. The govt cannot do everything. 90% of the responsibility lies with us. Please stay home as far as possible. Don't run off from quarantine and listen to doctors. We can't afford a mishap!🙏
— Darth (@CrusaderVader) March 17, 2020
https://twitter.com/SunoRishi/status/1239795536208617472
Kerala is next level!
— Vinay K (@Vinay0018) March 17, 2020
This could be an effective way of managing things. Drones and robots can pay a significant role in times like this especially when the disease is communicable.
Shocked/disappointed not a single video from China displayed use of tech.— AatmaNirbharWomaniya (@indie_electric) March 13, 2020
The more awareness that is spread, the better. Kudos to Kerala government for their initiative!