Robot ‘Pepe’ to nudge DSGMC-run school students to wash their hands

The hand-shaped robots with a small video screen will be mounted on the walls above hand-washing stations near washrooms.

Social robot ‘Pepe’ will nudge children studying in schools run by the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) to adopt better hygiene practices.

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‘Pepe’, developed by researchers from the University of Glasgow in collaboration with the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University in India, will be used in DSGMC-run schools to give a fresh approach to hygiene, said DSGMC chief Manjinder Singh Sirsa.

“Pepe robots each costing around ₹7,000 will be mounted on the wall above hand-washing stations near washrooms to inspire nearly 20,000 children studying in coeducation institutions to wash their hands properly,” he said.

The speaking robot will interact with children as they will pass by the sink and encourage them to practise proper hand-washing, Sirsa said.

The 12 branches of Guru Harkishan Public School, run by the DSGMC will install hand-washing machines to promote hygiene practices among children, he said.

School kids below 10 years from marginal sections of society who are most affected by poor sanitation and hygiene will be especially targeted under the programme, Sirsa said.

“An exclusive mobile app will be developed for monitoring the success of the programme. Schoolteachers will take photos of hygiene practices adopted by children on the campus and post it on the mobile application regularly,” he added.