A first: Locomotor disabled students get motorised wheelchairs in Punjab

Tribune News Service

Nitin Jain

Ludhiana, March 12

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the Punjab School Education Department has come to the help of children with special needs (CWSN), especially those suffering from the locomotor disability, studying in government schools of the state.

Brainchild of Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains and Secretary, School Education, Kamal Kishor Yadav, the special scheme has been rolled out with the distribution of first set of 50 motorised wheelchairs to the locomotor disabled students of Classes XI and XII at government schools across 10 districts in the state under the first phase of the project.

Developed by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, these India’s first indigenous motorised wheelchair vehicles that can be used not only on roads but even on uneven terrains, have been provided free of cost to the beneficiaries under the CSR (corporate social responsibility) sponsorship.

Know the wheelchair

Called ‘NeoBolt’, these wheelchairs with a maximum speed of 25 kmph and traveling distance up to 25 km per charge, costs Rs 1 lakh each. Powered by a Lithium-Ion battery that will give 25-km travel time for every charge, these vehicles will empower the users with a convenient, safe and low-cost mode of outdoor mobility when compared to cars, auto-rickshaws or modified scooters.

The Special Secretary, School Education, Gauri Parasher Joshi, told The Tribune, on Tuesday that an NGO, Sanjhi Sikhya, working for the CWSN introduced her to NeoMotion, a start-up, incubated at the IIT, Madras, which manufactures these wheelchairs.

“I interacted with start-up head Siddharth Daga along with the CWSN officials of our department, who shared his concept of the wheelchair, called Neobolt,” she said while informing that it was already being used by individuals in different states of the country.

Joshi, who roped in the CSR sponsors to implement the project, said the battery-operated wheelchairs run like a bike but at speeds low enough so that it was not classified as a vehicle and, therefore, it does not need a licence.

“The makers showed us videos of a person with disability from Chandigarh, who had a more independent life and worked for delivering food, as a result of the greater mobility given through this wheelchair,” she said, adding that the wheelchairs cost around Rs 1 lakh each and a private bank has agreed to sponsor 50 vehicles in the first phase.

The School Education Special Secretary divulged that the department has decided to begin the distribution from Classes XI and XII students, who were 16 to 17 years old and chose 50 students in the first round, who were given the wheelchairs last week.

“A camp for trials was also held in which the sponsors, parents, beneficiaries and the manufacturer were present. The start-up head showed each child how to use the wheelchair,” she said while mentioning that the trials evoked a positive response from the CWSN, who were overwhelmed to become independent in mobility.

Joshi said each wheelchair had been designed as per the requirement of the individual beneficiary. “Another private bank has committed to sponsor 40 more wheelchairs in the second phase,” she added.

Beneficiary dists

In the first phase, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Bathinda, Ropar, Malerkotla, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Faridkot districts have been covered while rest of the 13 districts in the state will be taken up in the second and subsequent phases.

Over 62K CWSN

As per official records, there were almost 62,000 children with special needs (CWSN) studying in government schools across the state.

What is locomotor disability?

Locomotor disability means disability of the bones, joints or muscles leading to substantial restriction of the movement of the limbs or any form of cerebral palsy.

The developers

NeoBolt was developed by a team, led by Prof Sujatha Srinivasan, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT, Madras, and has been commercialised through a start-up called NeoMotion, which has been co-founded by Prof Srinivasan and a Madras IIT alumni Swostik Sourav Dash, who is the CEO of NeoMotion.

About The Author

Tribune News Service

The Tribune News Service brings you the latest news, analysis and insights from the region, India and around the world. Follow the Tribune News Service for a wide-ranging coverage of events as they unfold, with perspective and clarity.

Join Whatsapp Channel of The Tribune for latest updates.