Washington: Tata's inexpensive water purifier, aimed at households that may not have electricity, bagged the top prize in The Wall Street Journal's Asian Innovation Awards. The purifier named Swach, which costs just Rs. 999, won the award amid
competition from nearly 300 entries. The Swach prevents water from being dispensed
once its filtration capabilities are exhausted. Journal's independent panel of
Judges selected 12 finalists and reviewed entries looking for products and services
that break with conventional processes in creative ways. Kenny Tang, chief executive
of Oxbridge Weather Capital and the head judge for the awards, said his criteria
also included real-world benefits in Asia. "The important criteria for me is the
use, in the practical sense, that it could be. That's been a clear feature of
the winners, not just this year but in recent years as well," the Wall Street
Journal quoted him as saying. While Swach, a Hindi word for 'clean', won the ace
position, Functional MicroArray, a drug-delivery device made of tiny needles,
won the Silver award and PassWindow, an authentication method for online accounts, took the Bronze.
