Jaipur,
Afghanistan, which for over two and a
half decades has seen wars and conflicts, has thousands of men and women who
became the victim of war and lost their limbs on account of various other
reasons like accidents and gangrene have found the Jaipur foot a very handy
tool which is very easy to handle and has proven durability.
“We have been facing hard time due to
war and conflict which have affected numerous families.
I was totally disturbed when I lost my one leg in landmine blast four years ago
and became handicapped with almost zero mobility. Making a living was difficult
and challenging, yet I managed to earn some money by selling fruits along a
roadside and now I am happy I will be able to move independently without
sticks,” 48-year old Abdul said.
He brought three other amputees along
with him to get fitted with the light weight Jaipur foot which is being
provided to amputees free of cost in a camp here organised by an Indian not
-for -profit NGO of Rajasthan Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti
(BMVSS),the world’s largest organisation for handicapped based in Jaipur.
Twenty Four year old Mirwaiz who was
gainfully employed as a soldier had not even in the wildest dream imagined that
his life would take a sad and painful turn. While on the job in a troubled area
in Kandahar, he lost one leg because of a massive blast. “Nothing was going
right for me and to add to my miseries I lost my parents and I as the only
offspring had to face these difficult times solely,” he says.
Mirwaiz carried with him his
despair and pain and the added worries of losing the job as he had lost one of
his leg in the blast. This further saddened him. “But Jaipur Foot has
given me hope and the specialists from India, after examining assured me to
provide a prosthetic which would not only allow me to walk easily, but I would
be able to even run. Now I can even find a bride for myself.” said Mirwaiz
wearing a broad smile on his face as he waits for his turn to come for
measurement of the foot to be done by the Jaipur Foot team.
On one single day at the Kabul’s Khair Khana
where the BMVSS was holding the camp, 65 handicapped were attended and some of
them walked with the artificial limb the very next day with confidence with the
smile on their face that ended years of miseries.
The camp will be there till July 7 and
BMVSS hopes to provide fitments to 1000 amputees free of cost by that
time. The camp has been organized by the BMVSS with the active support and
cooperation of the Afghanistan’s Ministry for Labour, Social welfare, Martyrs
and Disabled.
” We amputees used to share our pains and miseries, but
were hardly of any help to each other being handicapped. But the Jaipur
foot has given us mobility and the opportunity to earn our bread as we have
gained active mobility like any other normal person,” Ahmad Shah said.
This is the fifth visit of Jaipur Foot
team to Kabul in which 1000 Jaipur Foot will be provided. On earlier four
visits, on the spot fitment were provided to 3051 people and this time a team
of specialists will provide 1000 artificial limbs.
“The objective of such camp is to help
amputees to not only stand or move but to reintegrate into society with
dignity. We aim to socially, economically and physically rehabilitate the
handicapped persons. The BMVSS has undertaken the venture to help the
handicapped Afghans,” D R Mehta, founder and chief patron of the organisation,
said. Limbs are provided
free of cost to the handicapped who have lost limb below the knee and also
above the knee.
The camp is being sponsored by Al
Falah bank. BMVSS has
provided the artificial limbs to over 1.4 million since 1975 world over that
included countries like Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nigeria, Nairobi, Panama,
Philippines, Rwanda, Somalia, Trinidad, Vietnam, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Lebanon,
Mauritius, Iraq, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Senegal, Fiji, Liberia, Papua New Guinea,
Nepal, Malawi, Dominican Republic apart from Afghanistan.
एक टिप्पणी भेजें