Delhi innovator, mental health campaigner from Haryana win Diana Award in UK

PTI

London, March 15

A Delhi-based innovator whose low-cost electric invention helps overcome power cuts and a mental health campaigner from Haryana are the Indian winners among 20 worldwide recipients of Diana Legacy Awards, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Diana Award charity set up in memory of the late Princess of Wales.

Uday Bhatia, founder of Uday Electric, and Manasi Gupta, founder of Huesofthemind Foundation, received their awards from Prince William, the older son of Princess Diana, at an awards ceremony in London’s Science Museum on Thursday evening.

Taking place every two years, the Diana Legacy Award is a prestigious accolade for exceptional young people from around the world for their social action or humanitarian work.

“The paths taken by these young people have not always been easy. Many have overcome adversity and prejudice, but they are driven by courage, compassion and commitment – qualities shared by my mother,” said William, Prince of Wales, in his speech.

“Over the next two years, Diana Award, alongside many of their partners here today, will equip these young people with the skills to have an even bigger impact. I am excited to see what they can all do together,” he said.

When Uday Bhatia began mentoring students as a 16-year-old schoolboy in the slums of Bichpuri, Uttar Pradesh, he saw how frequent power cuts rendered children unable to study. To tackle the power crisis, he developed his ground-breaking invention called the Outage Guard bulb, as a low-cost solution designed to provide uninterrupted lighting for up to 10 hours during power cuts.

It has reportedly resulted in 950 families receiving stable and reliable power, boosting their educational and employment opportunities.

“Being a social innovator means tirelessly solving problems for the community. I view Diana Legacy Award as a means to generate a ripple effect that inspires social innovators to change the way we view global issues,” said 18-year-old Bhatia on receiving the honour.

“My late grandmother always motivated me to be a changemaker and to be the best version of myself. I hope that I’ve made her proud. More than just recognition, it has provided me with a launchpad and a vast network of connections to enhance my impact,” he said.

Bhatia’s aim now is to focus on energy generation alongside energy storage, with the goal of “lighting every house across the globe, one bulb at a time”.

Manasi Gupta, 24, was recognised for having personally delivered over 100 sessions globally to encourage an emphasis on mental health support.

Impacting over 50,000 lives through her non-profit Huesofthemind Foundation, she is credited with creating an empathetic community focused on mental health support, and in collaboration with over 200 stakeholders, has delivered innovative campaigns, projects and events globally.

Gupta’s work during the pandemic was recognised by the former Health Secretary of India at IHW (Integrated Health & Wellbeing) Digital Health Awards.

“I believe that we have a long way to go to make mental health services more affordable in India and to destigmatise conversations around mental wellbeing. In Gandhiji’s words, I continue to use that barrier as motivation to keep being the change I wish to see – by leveraging the power of communities, expressive arts and compassion,” said Gupta.

Gupta has also created an illustrated book to raise funds and increase awareness through social media, reaching more than 1.2 million viewers in the past four years.

Bhatia and Gupta joined young changemakers from around the world, including the UK, US, UAE, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, Oman, Romania, Jamaica, Cayman Islands and Australia, at the awards ceremony this week.

Princess Diana’s younger son, Prince Harry, made an appearance via video call from his California home to interact with the winners. 

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