The Atal Innovation Mission, India’s policy commission (NITI Aayog), and the National Informatics Centre (NIC) has launched CollabCAD, a collaborative network, computer-enabled software system.
The platform provides total engineering solutions from 2D drafting and detailing to 3D product design, a press release has said.
The aim of this initiative is to provide a platform for students of Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) across the country to create and modify 3D designs. This software would also enable students to create data across the network and concurrently access the same design data for storage and visualisation.
ATLs established across India, provide tinkering spaces to children to hone their innovative ideas and creativity. AIM’s collaboration with NIC’s CollabCAD is a platform for students to utilise indigenous, state-of-the-art made-in-India software for 3D modelling/slicing to use 3D printing.
A customised version of CollabCAD for ATLs with features that are most relevant to school students to materialise their ideas and creativity into physical solutions has been developed to enable designing without constraints and, thus, allowing creativity and innovation to thrive.
The release noted that 3D printing is going to be an integral part of the new 21st century innovations and AIM, NITI Aayog is proud to enable designing through CollabCAD in 5,000 ATLs with over 2.5 million students having access to it.
NIC is playing a crucial role in pushing the online module to reach to students across the country by providing a huge source of data through this software CAD system, the release claimed.
The NIC Director-General said that the software is an indigenous three-dimensional computer-aided design system, which helps the user to build models in virtual 3D spaces and create and engineering drawings for shop floor which makes it a complete package for smart manufacturing.
Moreover, in light of the current situation, the ATL program has launched a ‘Tinker from Home’ campaign to ensure that the children have access to useful easy-to-learn online resources to keep themselves fruitfully occupied.
The release said the objective of the initiative is to harness the creativity and innovativeness of children by encouraging learning through self-initiation.
AIM also launched Game Development, which is an online platform where students can start their learning journey while tinkering from home. Through the platform, they can learn to create and share their own games. This platform envisages making students transition from ‘game players’ to ‘game makers’.
AIM, housed at NITI Aayog, promotes a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. At the school level, AIM is establishing ATLs in all districts across India. As of today, AIM has selected a total of 14,916 schools across the country spread across 33 different states and union territories, to establish ATLs.
The Human Resource Development Ministry (MHRD) has taken several new initiatives to ensure that the education of learners does not get adversely affected by the lockdown measures to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
As OpenGov reported earlier, under the direction of MHRD, the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) has launched measures to that effective schooling continues to reach the unreached directly at their homes.
Quality educational content is being made available via Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) through the ‘SWAYAM’ platform for grades 9 to 12. Students who are at home preparing for JEE and NEET are also benefitting from this initiative.
Along with self-learning material, the ‘SWAYAM’ portal features video lectures and self-assessment tools. There are also discussion forums where learners can have their questions and queries resolved.
