SanDisk Equality Award
Devendra Raj Mehta: Mehta helped create the Jaipur Foot/Limb, a simple and extremely efficient prosthesis that utilizes innovative technology and materials. The Jaipur Foot/Limb allows normal walking, running, sitting, climbing and other daily activities. Since 1975, nearly 1 million people worldwide have been fitted for the Jaipur limb. Read More...

D.R. Mehta, Armand Neukermans visit Stanford Biodesign
D. R. Mehta, founder and patron of the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samit (BMVSS), which provides free leg prosthetics to amputees (the Jaipur Foot), visited Stanford on August 10, 2007.  He was accompanied by Armand Neukermans, Founder of Xros/Nortel who has been a serial entrepreneur for over 35 years and is a patron of BMVSS.  The two were visiting to request assistance in the development of a new ‘Jaipur Foot’ that would include a knee joint.  Partnering with Thomas Andriacchi’s class, Medical Device Design & Evaluation,  Biodesign will work with Mehta and  Neukermans to  provide  the need to Andriacchi’s students. Read More...

BMVSS bags CNBC-TV18 Social Enterprise of Yr Award
The Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti has served almost a million people worldwide. Though it's better known for the Jaipur foot and other indigenously developed cost efficient artificial limbs, this organisation works towards the overall physical, economical and social rehabilitation of physically challenged people. 99% of it's patients are below the poverty line. While it was founded by former Sebi Chief D R Mehta over 30 years ago, the jury believes it has yet to get the recognition it deserves - and so this vote was spontaneous and unanimous. Read More... 2007-12-01 14:01:33 Source : CNBC-TV18

989 get Jaipur foot in Pakistan

Special Correspondent
Team returns after providing artificial legs successfully

Camps, centres established in Karachi, Islamabad
Technology to be transferred to local technicians

JAIPUR: A 17-member team of the Mahavir Vikalang Sahayata Samiti (MVSS) has returned here from Pakistan after providing the famous “Jaipur Foot” to 989 disabled persons at two special camps held in Islamabad and Karachi. The artificial limbs were given free of cost with the help of voluntary organisations of Pakistan. Two artificial limb centres established Read More..

Jaipur foot All Set to Launch Its Centre in Columbia
... Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS), producers of the artificial limb, to set up base in the South American country. The BMVSS has entered into a tie-up with a Colombia-based NGO. M.K. Mathur of BMVSS told IANS: "The jaipur foot centre in Colombia is slated to start in August." According to h... Read More...

"People who live inside world’s many war zones, from Afghanistan to Rwanda, may never have heard of New York or Paris, but they are likely to know of a town in Northern India called Jaipur. Jaipur is famous in strife torn areas as the birthplace of an extraordinary prosthesis, or artificial limb, known as the Jaipur Foot, that has revolutionized life of land-mine amputees. The beauty of the Jaipur Foot is its lightness and mobility - those who wear it can run, climb trees & pedal bicycles - and its low price. While prosthesis for a similar level of amputation can cost several thousand dollars in the US, the Jaipur Foot costs only now $30 in India. "
Time Magazine, USA ( Issue of Fall 1997 )

As aid pours into Afghanistan, a special consignment from India is probably bringing more happiness to Kabul than the rest of the world's cargo combined……… The consignment consists of 1,000 pieces of the Jaipur foot, a prosthesis named after the northern Indian city where it was developed in 1970. It was taken on a special Indian air force plane to Kabul earlier this month………… As goodwill gestures go, it has probably earned India more appreciation than any amount of diplomacy……….. Along with the consignment went a team from Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS), a Jaipur charity that provides artificial legs for the poor. The Jaipur foot is a household name among people who live in the world's many war zones. From Afghanistan to Angola, the below-the-knee limb is famous for transforming the lives of millions of landmine amputees. Read full article (“Jaipur Foot” brings happiness to Afghan Amputees)

The Guardian - 17-01-2002 (LONDON) & The Dawn (a leading Pakistani newspaper)-19-01-2002

"I wish to extend my thanks and congratulations for a superb programme in  Kumi  Hospital, Uganda. Your technicians did a marvelous job in training the tecnicians  of Uganda. They gained the respect and attention of all involved. They certainly  were well received by the patients. I asked two senior level Prosthetists, Mr. Tim  Staats from California and Mr. Gred Van Der Velde from Belgium and the  International Red Cross to assess the method and both were favourably  impressed. It is our hope that we will continue to work with you in the future to  help benefit the lives of people with disabilities and their families throughout the  world."
Jack Victor, President, World Rehabilitation Fund, USA.

Leg up for Jaipur foot in Lebanon
CNN-IBN (Saqib Malik) Jaipur: There is some good news for people in Lebanon who have lost their limbs in the war. They will be able to walk again courtesy the efforts of a voluntary organisation in Jaipur.
The artificial limbs popularly known as 'Jaipur foot' are being made in Rajasthan by a voluntary organization called Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti. Workers at the Samiti are working round the clock to produce limbs for war amputees in Lebanon.

"They were satisfied with the first camp so another camp, will be held with much larger number of patients in October 2006. I don't know when the situation there would be peaceful enough to hold the camp. But we are ready and even if there are bombings, we don't mind going there," Chief Patron, Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti, D R Mehta says.
The 'Jaipur foot, which is lightweight and low priced, has given millions of amputees across the world and in Lebanon a reason to live again.
(Watch Video & read more....)

World Landmine News
‘Jaipur Foot’ gives mobility to landmine victims in Lebanon - Khaleej Times- Posted: Saturday, July 8, 2006

JAIPUR — The Jaipur Foot, the extraordinary prosthesis or artificial limb, that has revolutionised life of millions of landmine amputees all over the world, has reached Lebanon.

An Indian Battalion deployed in the eastern region of South Lebanon realised the problem of landmine victims fitted with outdated artificial limbs and some without the ones.

The Indian troops during their interaction with the local populace, came to know that many landmine victims could not replace their old and outdated artificial limbs, as they could not afford the new ones, which were very expensive. Read full article

Indian contingent at UNIFIL launches Jaipur Foot project

(April 13, 2007)
  Read full article
Jaipur foot for Lebanon victims
 
''In the western design for artificial feet, one must necessarily wear shoes which means you can' t enter a Mosque. Secondly, to perform the Namaaz, one needs to kneel which is not at all possible in the western design. But Jaipur Foot permits all this,'' said D R Mehta, Chairman, Mahavir Viklang Sahayata.
 
From the modest centre in the western city, the Jaipur Foot has traveled all over the world, bringing hope to victims in several war torn countries like Afghanistan, Somalia and Vietnam.

Now this project in Lebanon is clearly another step in the right direction for this noble mission.

Indian UN blue helmets provide artificial limbs to mine victims in southern Lebanon

23 April 2007 – Indian peacekeepers serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) are providing artificial limbs to victims of mine and cluster bombs in a special project at their headquarters in the south of the country. (read more…)

Organization brings smile, confidence back to amputees
City News - March 06, 2007 -Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The center and Jaipur Foot fitted new prosthetic legs to some 250 amputees. From Feb. 24, seven technicians from India flew to Jakarta, bringing with them materials and an oven to manufacture prostheses. Together, they planned to give new legs to 300 amputees in this program, which concludes March 8.
A person who loses a part of even just one of their limbs could lose their economic independence and self-respect, said D.R. Mehta, a founding member of Jaipur Foot.
"We're trying to give back their self-esteem and human dignity," he said.
Mehta said he was literally in tears seeing the father and son stand side-by-side once again. "Hopefully, with the new legs, they can live a better life," he said. Read full article

Device lets amputees stand tall
The Jaipur Foot, a low cost prosthetic invented in India, does what Western limbs could not.

JAIPUR, India -- In a cobbled courtyard in a city famed for artisans, a team of craftsmen taps and carves to make an object coveted throughout Asia.
It's not a statue, necklace or fixture for one of Jaipur's palatial hotels.
It's a foot -- a plain, prosthetic foot, fashioned out of ordinary rubber. It's called the Jaipur Foot, and it is so cheap, flexible and suited for the East that it eclipses limbs made in the West, many doctors say.
"The Jaipur Foot is a unique and well-designed approach to the needs of its community," says orthopedist Richard Haynes, chief of staff at Shriners Hospital for Children in Houston. "Its ingenuity is spectacular."
Costing just $28 to make -- less than 1/200th the price of a Western artificial limb -- the Jaipur Foot and its hardware allow movements that are difficult and usually unneeded with prostheses in the West, experts say. Read full article

Jaipur Foot soon in Latin America
Meanwhile I Narayan Bareth
Jaipur: The Jaipur Foot, known as cosmetically and functionally close to the human limb, will make its presence soon in Latin America. Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS) is going to set up its centre in Colombia to provide the Jaipur Foot to maimed people.
The BMVSS has sent its team to Beirut, capital of Lebanon, to fit the Jaipur Foot to people who had lost their limbs in a land mine blast.
"We had applied for a visa for Pakistan and are ready to organise a camp in Pakistan," says D.R. Mehta, founder of BMVSS. Besides this, BMVSS is also planning to organise a camp near the Iraq border to provide the Jaipur Foot to the war-ravaged country. Read full article

'Jaipur foot' crosses over to Pakistan -TIMES NEWS NETWORK
JAIPUR: It took a BBC film to do it, but the Jaipur Foot seems set to step across to Pakistan. Lahore-based businessman Mian Mansha has approached the Mahavir Viklang Samiti here, seeking a Jaipur Foot camp in Pakistan for the benfit of amputees.

A film on the Jaipur Foot that BBC aired in April this year so moved Mansha that he immediately contacted a Mumbai-based business acquaintance, Mahendra Mehta. The Lahore businessman is willing to walk the extra mile, volunteering to bear all costs.

Former SEBI chairman DR Mehta, who heads the Mahavir Viklang Samiti, said the proposal has been conveyed to the external affairs ministry. Mehta said he has also told external affairs minister Natwar Singh that a Jaipur Foot camp in Pakistan would not only be a humanitarian gesture, but would also help in strengthening Indo-Pak relations.Read full article

Jaipur foot makers make their way to Old City-TIMES NEWS NETWORK
HYDERABAD: One need not go all the way to Jaipur to get an artificial limb, for the makers of the world famous foot have set up a centre at King Koti in the city.

Being promoted by the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS) of Jaipur, the local branch has started operations from the King Koti hospital last week. The calipers for the amputees and modified footwear for polio-effected persons would be supplied free of cost at the centre.

BMVSS founder president D R Mehta says the Hyderabad office would be developed as a regional centre for the entire south India. The Samiti is also involved in the process of developing and improving the required appliances and aids for the physically challenged persons. Read full article


TOP STORIES

Jaipur Foot takes off for Lebanon


By IANS

Friday April 13, 09:10 AM

Jaipur, April 13 (IANS) The Jaipur Foot - artificial legs made in Rajasthan - is all set to travel to war-hit Lebanon and Sri Lanka to aid amputees there.
Experts from the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayta Samiti (BMVSS) will travel to the Middle East on the invitation of the Indian contingent of the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, BMVSS general secretary S.R. Mehta said.
The team would open a camp in Lebanon April 14 to 25. Five technicians would accompany the team to fit the artificial limb on survivors of Israeli and other bombings.
Mehta told IANS that 100 people have been identified for the fitting. 'After Lebanon, we propose to go to Colombo.'
BMVSS had organised a 15-day camp in Jakarta in February that saw 350 people fitted with the Jaipur Foot.
'These were people who had lost their limbs to diseases or mishaps. There were some who had lost it in the tsunami,' Mehta said. 'Besides Jakarta, we have held camps in Sudan, Afghanistan and parts of Latin America.'Read full article
TOP STORIES

Jaipur limb for Indonesians


By IANS

Thursday February 22, 01:39 PM

Jaipur, Feb 22 (IANS) At least 350 Indonesians who lost their limbs due to disease, accident or disasters like the tsunami will be fitted with Jaipur-made artificial limbs in Jakarta.
'On the invitation of a non-resident Indian association, we are organising a 15-day camp in Jakarta from Friday, in which 350 people will be fitted with the Jaipur Foot,' D.R. Mehta, the founder of the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayta Samiti in Jaipur, told IANS here.
He said the association received over 1,000 applications, but 'as we are carrying material for less numbers, we will be able to fit the artificial limbs free of cost to only 350 people'.
Mehta added: 'This would be our 21st visit to a foreign country. So far we have held camps in Sudan, Afghanistan and parts of Latin America. Last year, we provided limbs to over 19,000 people in India and overseas.''Read full article

Friday, 4 January, 2002, 17:21 GMT
'Jaipur foot' for Afghan amputees


Thousands have lost limbs during 20 years of war
By Ian McWilliam in Kabul
Thousands of Afghans have lost one or both legs to the landmines that litter the country after more than two decades of war.
An Indian orthopaedic team has arrived in the capital, Kabul, with 1,000 artificial limbs to be fitted free of charge.
The project is funded by the Indian Government, which has close ties with Afghanistan's new interim government leaders.
The artificial legs, provided by the BMVSS charity based in Jaipur in Rajasthan, have a specially designed foot for use in less developed countries.
The team has set up shop in a disused building in the grounds of Kabul's main army hospital, where it receives a steady flow of patients.
'Read full article

US Univ provides upgraded technology for 'Jaipur Foot'

Jaipur | February 21, 2007 7:41:07 PM IST
The miraculous artificial limb 'Jaipur Foot', which have helped millions walk again, is now being upgraded with US technology.
The Centre of International Rehabilitation (CIR), Northwestern University in Chicago has transfered the technology of making total contact socket through sand casting method to Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayta Samiti (BMVSS), an NGO here which has been helping the physically challenged walk again by fitting them with Jaipur Foot, absolutely free of cost since 1975.
The new improved sand casting method can mould the shape of the limb within five minutes without wastage of raw material, said Dr M K Mathur, the chief doctor of BMVSS.
According to Dr Mathur the earlier of method which used Plaster of Paris would take at least two hours. He said the system was put in place at the Centre here for more than a year by the CIR experts.
The sand casting system has been moulded to suit the Indian conditions and field and laboratory trials are on , said Dr D R Mehta, founder of BMVSS said. Once the system is approved after a meeting with US experts in March, the method would be put into commercial use from April.

Victims of Landmine Blasts Walks with the Help of Jaipur Foot

More than 20 crippled Lebanese, victims of land mine blasts in that country, are able to walk now, thanks to the prosthetic Jaipur Foot developed by a non-governmental organisation here.

A two-member team from the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS) conducted a preliminary camp in the last week of June in Beirut where they fitted the famous Jaipur Foot on 22 Lebanese who had lost their legs in land mine explosions.

"Colonel Subash Pawar, of the fourth battalion of the Sikh regiment and part of the 11-nation United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), approached us to alleviate the sufferings of people with amputated limbs in that country," said D.R. Mehta, founder and patron of the organisation. Read full article