IIT-M develops India's first indigenous motorised wheelchair

Shailesh Kumar was paralysed in 2011 due to a spinal cord injury. For 10 years, he faced many difficulties in moving around in a wheelchair. But now, he is a free man – he just hops onto his NeoBolt, the country’s first indigenous motorised wheelchair vehicle developed by IIT-Madras and drives around in his village without having to depend on anyone.

“I can easily move around within my locality with the wheelchair, and I can travel within the village if I fit the motor-powered attachment which gives me freedom,” Kumar says, with a smile. The motorised wheelchair has a maximum speed of 25 kmph and travels up to 25 km per charge.

Kumar is one of the 600 persons who are using the newly developed vehicle across 28 states in the country. While the personalised wheelchair known as NeoFly is priced at Rs 39,900, the motorized add-on costs Rs 55,000. The vehicle can be used not only on roads but even on uneven terrains.

IIT-M said the price is very less when compared to similar products that are available in the global market that are costlier by three to five times. India imports 2.5 lakh to 3 lakh wheelchairs in a year. Nearly 95 per cent of all wheelchairs sold in India are ‘one-size-fits-all,’ which restricts mobility, damages health, and lowers self-confidence, the IIT-M said.

Developed by a team led by Prof Sujatha Srinivasan of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT-Madras, the motorised wheelchair has been commercialised through a startup called NeoMotion co-founded by the professor and Swostik Sourav Dash, an alumnus of the institute.

Prof Srinivasan said their aim was to transform the disability landscape in India by creating functional and affordable assistive devices.

“The motor-powered attachment, NeoBolt converts NeoFly into a safe, road-worthy vehicle that can navigate any kind of terrain that we may normally encounter - drive through unpaved streets or climb a steep gradient. And do this comfortably as it has suspensions to absorb the shocks,” she said. As many as 18 customizations ensure a perfect fit for the user’s requirements.

NeoFly covers three to five times more distance for every push owing to the right posture, a rigid frame, and an ergonomic push rim. A 30 per cent smaller footprint for the same seating area enhances the accessibility of narrow spaces, the company’s CEO Dash said.