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Ministry of Science and Technology develops relatively low-cost wheelchair for the differently-abled people

| | Jan 29, 2016, at 12:40 am
#Ministry of Science # Technology # wheelchair
New Delhi, Jan 28 (IBNS): Union minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan dedicated to the nation on Thursday a low cost motorized wheelchair, called Locomo, developed by the Department of Biotechnology under the Make-in-India initiative.
The Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Harsh Vardhan, on Thursday, dedicated a low cost motorized wheelchair called Locomo wheel chair to people with disabilities.
 
The wheel chair has been developed by the ministry's Department of Biotechnology, (DBT) under the  Make-in-India initiative.
 
The motorized wheelchair was originally designed at the Human Engineering Research Lab, University of Pittsburg under a joint international collaborative program of DBT and the US government.
 
The wheelchair was then completely remodelled to suit Indian conditions.   
 
The Medical Director & Chief of Spine Service Dr. H S Chhabra and  Nekram Upadhaya at ISIC  further worked on the wheel chair to make it suitable for the uneven terrain in rural India and lower the cost of manufacturing.
 
Prohibitive costs often deter people with disabilities from buying wheelchairs available in the market.
 
Estimated cost of this newly designed wheel chair called Locomo would be around Rs 45,000  compared to the imported motorized wheelchair which costs around Rs 1.5 lakhs. 
 
The cost of the Indian version is expected to come down with mass production and tax exemptions. 
 
One of the key features of the Locomo wheel chair is its suspension system where linear links will allow all four wheels to operate independently and  make it suitable to handle uneven terrain also.
 
The Locomo wheel chair is expected to withstand rugged conditions and at the same time be comfortable and easy to manipulate  It is also light weight, simple to handle, easy to fold and reassemble.
 
Speaking on the occasion, the minister said all such technical advancement should be made accessible the needy poor also. 
 
Secretary, Department of Biotechnology,  VijayRaghavan, Dr. Rajesh Kapur, Advisor DBT and Padma Bhushan Major (Retd) HPS Ahluwalia, the Chairman of the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, (ISIC) New Delhi were present at the event.

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