It was a traumatic road accident in the thick of Thar desert in the early seventies that left young IAS officer Devendra Raj Mehta confined to bed for months and inspired him to set up a centre that has changed the lives of 1.4 million amputees worldwide.
Mehta, who was the Jaisalmer collector, received multiple injuries and broke his limbs in the accident.
Having felt the pains and agonies of a man who was confined to bed for months together and had to undergo surgery for setting the bones in his limbs, he dreamt of setting up a centre for rehabilitation of the handicapped.
As a result of the trauma he suffered, Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti was founded in 1975, which is now the world's largest organisation for disabled and provides the famous Jaipur Foot to amputees free of cost.
The Jaipur Foot was invented by a team of eminent orthopaedic surgeons and craftsmen of Sawai Man Singh government college of Jaipur in 1968 and was further developed and fitted to amputees by Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayta Samiti (BMVSS)- Jaipur since 1975.
"The Foot not only makes the amputee stand on their own, but also enables them to walk (on uneven terrain also), run, squat, work in wet muddy fields and even do activities like trekking, climbing on trees and swimming like a normal person," Mehta said.
"Jaipur Foot is a universal foot and distinguished from other sophisticated and expensive Western prosthetic foot," he claimed.
It is more natural and nearer to the normal foot as compared to other artificial foots, he said.
Mehta, a recipient of India's second highest civilian award Padma Bhushan, is in Kabul for a month-long camp to fit the artificial limbs to 1,000 Afghan amputees, fifth such camp of his organisation in the war-torn country.
The Jaipur Foot has changed lives of 1.4 million amputees from war zones in Afghanistan and Rwanda to accident victims in other countries. It restored dignity of amputees by gaining them mobility.
It has been improved with researches over the years involving different partners like Stanford University of California, Massachusetts Institute of Technology USA and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) among others.
Several amputees are visiting the camp at Khairkhana area in the capital city to get themselves fitted with the light weight Jaipur Foot.
30-year-old Karima, who lost her both legs in two separate accidents, one in mortar attack and the other in a landmine blast, said that she had been leading a difficult life with local feet, which are heavier.
Now with the light-weight Jaipur Foot, Karima said she will be able to do her daily works easily.
