New Delhi, August 12(HS): In an unprecedented convergence of creativity, technology, and youthful energy, the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) under NITI Aayog today orchestrated what is being hailed as the largest synchronized school innovation event in Indian history — and potentially the world.

Branded as “Mega Tinkering Day”, the nationwide movement united 4,73,350 students from 9,467 Atal Tinkering Lab (ATL)-enabled schools across all 35 States and Union Territories for one live, collaborative challenge: to design and build a functional DIY vacuum cleaner using only everyday materials available in their school labs.

The hands-on session — streamed live and guided step-by-step — transformed thousands of classrooms, from the snow-laced valleys of Leh, Ladakh and Kargil to the palm-lined coasts of Kanyakumari, from the aspirational districts of Virudhunagar to the far-flung frontiers of Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, and across the salt plains of Bhuj and Kutch. Even the AIM leadership team joined in, tinkering side-by-side with the nation’s young innovators.

“A Global First in Scale and Synchronisation”

“In line with the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, Mega Tinkering Day 2025 is a milestone demonstration of the power of grassroots innovation,” declared Deepak Bagla, Mission Director, AIM. “For the first time ever, over 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs came together in one synchronised hour of creativity. Lakhs of students built, learned, and innovated as one — something no other nation has achieved at this scale inside its school ecosystem.”

Bagla underlined that the event was more than an exercise in making — it was a live demonstration of how youthful ingenuity, when empowered, can tackle real-world challenges and create solutions for both India and the wider world.

Turning Classrooms into Cradles of Innovation

Since inception, AIM has set up over 10,000 ATLs, giving students access to a spectrum of modern tools — including 3D printers, robotics kits, Internet of Things devices, and electronics workbenches — to enable experimental learning and problem-solving.

Mega Tinkering Day was as much a symbolic moment as a technical exercise: A national innovation movement in miniature, demonstrating that invention belongs not just to research labs and tech hubs, but to the everyday classroom, even in India’s remotest corners.

Why It Matters

Education experts say this is a defining moment for India’s STEM learning revolution — one that signals innovation can be inclusive, decentralised, and community-driven. By synchronising such an exercise nationwide, AIM has embedded a deeper message: when young creators unite, they form a single powerhouse of possibility.

The event also serves as a launchpad for the new academic year’s tinkering challenges, mobilising teachers, mentors, higher education institutions, and industry partners to fuel a culture of practical problem-solving and entrepreneurship from the school level up.

The Road Ahead

AIM officials confirm that more large-scale, thematic maker challenges are planned over the coming year — from renewable energy prototypes to assistive technology — with an eye toward transforming today’s projects into tomorrow’s market-ready solutions.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar