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Rehabilitation Centre Offers New Lease of Life for Disabled Armymen

by Medindia Content Team on Nov 23 2007 7:15 PM

Many disabled army personnel are making a new beginning in life at Mohali in Punjab having already hanged on their shoes for a long time, thanks to Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre (PRC) at Mohali near Chandigarh.

At least 37 former army personnel are getting rehabilitated at the PRC, who had turned paraplegic or tetraplegic while being in service are becoming self-reliant here. Of the total inpatient residents, 24 are paralysed below the waist while the rest 13 are the ones whose all four limbs are paralysed.

"The objective of Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre is to rehabilitate 100 per cent disabled paraplegic and tetraplegic army men and motivate them. We also provide them with vocational training so that they can be self-reliant,” said Colonel (Retired) Jaswant Singh Spehia, Director PRC in Mohali.

“Firstly, we give the in-patients here physiotherapy to improve their muscle power. Then we treat them with diversion therapy to divert therapy depressed minds. We use sports, meditation and other activities to improve their lives," Spehia informed.

The concept of Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centres has received incouragement since the seventies to help those who suffered spinal or other injuries.

Ajit Kumar Shukla, 26, an in-patient resident of PRC became paraplegic after suffering a bullet injury in 2005 while serving in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We play games. We are confident now. We are no less then a normal man, we are full of enthusiasm," said Ajit Kumar Shukla, an in-patient resident of PRC.

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"My life was full of despair earlier, particularly after all my children went to other places to pursue higher studies. I contacted the authorities at this centre and I came here. I feel confident and happy after gaining different skills at this place," said Anil Jha, another PRC in-patient.

First Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre was set up at Kirkee (Maharashtra) whereas the one at Mohali was set up in 1978.

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It offers vocational training in cloth weaving, knitting, tailoring, candle making and wire brush making to the unfortunate former soldiers and enables them to eke out a living with dignity.

The rehabilitation centre provides facilities like medical treatment, physiotherapy, physical exercise, sports and computer training to enable in-patients to become self-reliant.

Source-ANI
SRM/P


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