Our very own, Devansh Manoj Jalan (BBA LLB, Class of 2016) has received Indian and US Patents for a technology he invented called ‘Method and System for Managing the Usage of a Plurality of Battery Units to Power an Electric Vehicle’. This technology aims to make the usage of electric vehicles more practical, flexible and economical in India and other developing countries. In times of a climate crisis, the young inventor’s creation is truly remarkable.
“This is a rather unique and extraordinary achievement for a law student. It is for the first time in JGU’s history that a student has received a patent. This is an incredible recognition for a number of reasons. Typically, these type of achievements are witnessed in institutions that offer STEM disciplines. However, the institutional ecosystem at JGU has enabled students like Devansh to think out of the box and indeed pursue their imaginations to areas that transcend the specific courses that they study at JGU,” says JGU’s Founding Vice Chancellor, Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar.
While interning in the Office of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 2018, the Jindal Global Law School student worked on a project to promote and integrate electric vehicles in Mumbai and Maharashtra. Based on his observations and experiences of electric vehicles while travelling in Germany, Israel and USA, Devansh researched at length to understand the functioning of electric vehicles and their limitations.
He continued to develop this technology and in July 2019, filed for a provisional patent with the Indian Patent Office. After a search and fine-tuning of the technology, he applied for patents in India and the US. After due process and hearings, Devansh received the US Patent in September 2020 and the Indian Patent in October 2020.
Talking about his time at JGU, Devansh says, “While in the last leg of my five-year journey and taking stock of the time spent here, I am grateful that JGU did not just educate, but taught me to cogitate. Coming here from a schooling system which was more a process of learning by rote, having to churn one’s mind and think beyond the confines of one’s horizon was a stimulating change at JGU. Although my invention is as far removed from law as a lawyer is from an inventor, it is the legal education, and more so the tutelage and worldliness at JGU, which has taught me to challenge the intellect and seek solutions. It would be appropriate to mention here that even my fledgling legal knowledge was a great help in the patenting process.”
“Personally, I am very proud of Devansh because he is also a very vocal, thoughtful, deeply engaged, and an absolutely committed JGU student. If there is an award that I can give for anybody who attended the maximum number of my “VC Office Open House Conversations”, it would be Devansh. Many a time, I would have these Open House Conversations at 8AM in the morning, and on several occasions, it will be just Devansh and I talking about all kinds of issues that he would raise in relation to how to make JGU a better place. He is very measured in his criticism and always responsible when it comes to engaging with us as he understands and appreciates the ethos and values of JGU,” adds Prof. Raj Kumar.
Devansh also has some fond memories of his interactions with Prof. Raj: “I have visited the Vice Chancellor so often that he offered me a Frequent Flyer card of his office! Every time I interacted, I did so because I knew that my problem would be greeted with a smile and ended with a fair solution: “I have visited the Vice Chancellor so often that he offered me a Frequent Flyer card of his office! Every time I interacted, I did so because I knew that my problem would be greeted with a smile and ended with a fair solution.”
Devansh has set an example for all the students of JGU and beyond, to not limit their imaginations and bring innovation to the forefront of social and environmental change.
He took on this tech project as a challenge; and it was the potent combination of his curiosity to understand the subject at length and commitment to the vision that has brought him this far. We wish him all the success in his future endeavours!
