Design and develop a smart, solar-powered drying and compact packaging system to support home-based agarbatti manufacturing by rural women artisans.

Official description

Background: Agarbatti making is a key home-based livelihood for rural women, but traditional drying methods depend on weather and often cause uneven drying, moisture issues, and loss of fragrance, reducing product quality and income. Hence, there is a need for an affordable smart drying and packaging system suitable for rural household-based production. Description: Traditional agarbatti drying is slow, weather-dependent, and leads to uneven drying, fragrance loss, fungal growth, and breakage, reducing product quality and income for rural women artisans. Therefore, there is a need for a smart solar-powered drying chamber with temperature and humidity control for uniform, hygienic, all-weather drying, along with a low-cost packaging system to preserve fragrance, improve shelf life, and enhance marketability. Expected Solution: The proposed solution is a compact, low-cost, solar-powered smart drying chamber for rural home-based agarbatti production, along with a simple packaging/sealing device to ensure moisture resistance, fragrance preservation, and improved product quality and shelf life. The system should include: • Solar-powered controlled drying mechanism • Temperature and humidity sensors • Uniform airflow and hygienic enclosed chamber • Portable and easy-to-operate design • Fragrance-preserving drying conditions • Battery backup support • Optional AI/IoT-based monitoring and alerts Packaging Support • Low-cost moisture-resistant and aroma-preserving packaging • Compact sealing/packaging mechanism suitable for SHGs/women artisans • Eco-friendly packaging options