Shruti Babu, a middle-class woman from Coimbatore, completed her Biomedical Instrumentation engineering course from Avinasilingam University in 2016. Her dream of becoming an entrepreneur after completing her studies has come true today with the invention of a special wheelchair for wheelchair users in India. The wheelchair is called “Sahayada” and has a toilet facility that enables users to self-clean after natural wear and tear. Sahayada users need only minimal help to pick up and dispose of the waste after they have defecated and cleaned themselves. Shruti’s father, a mechanical engineer, supported her in creating the Sahayada. A total of 118 prototypes were created and tested before the final product took shape. After her father’s death, Shruti faced several challenges as a woman but continued to work hard to bring her product to market. She has launched an initiative to bring at least 10,000 chairs to people in the next five years.
image source, Shruti Babu
“There is a large number of wheelchair users in India, including the disabled, the elderly and the sick. All of them depend on the help of others to use the toilet and clean themselves after defecation.
But now they don’t need to depend on others, the special wheelchair I have developed will help them to move independently,” says Shruti Babu.
A middle-class woman from Coimbatore, Shruti completed her Biomedical Instrumentation engineering course from Avinasilingam University, Coimbatore in 2016. His dream of becoming an entrepreneur after completing his studies has come true today.
Wheelchair with toilet facility
“There were no immediate opportunities after graduation. I was working in a company. But the dream of becoming an entrepreneur kept growing in my mind. So after the job was done I researched the opportunities. That’s when I got a fellowship from the BIRAC agency of the central government. I decided to make the most of this opportunity to achieve my ambition,” Shruti Babu told BBC.
He went on to say, “The nucleus of this fellowship was revealed to be “elders”. That means we need to develop a product that can help the elderly.
So, I visited hospitals, nursing homes and researched the needs of the elderly. One such scene I saw in the hospital one day led to the creation of a special wheelchair called ‘Sahayada’.
An old man who suffered from stroke in the hospital asked the nurse for a ‘bed pan’ to relieve his natural ailments. But he said there was no bedpan and the old man’s two daughters tried to take him to the toilet by putting him in a wheelchair. The two daughters struggled to lift their father and put him in a wheelchair.
Shruti Babu
He was also distressed to think that his daughters had come to the point of taking him to the toilet. When he went into the toilet he tried to hide his body and cowered in shame. In response to such a situation, he said that I might have died. This incident affected me a lot,” says Shruti.
He added, “I visited many more hospitals and archives to confirm whether this was just one person’s problem or everyone else’s like him. I traveled to Mumbai, Odisha, Kerala and other states. Ultimately, people from all walks of life who use wheelchairs have their own way of deducting natural disabilities. It is clear to me that they face great embarrassment daily to the point of losing respect.
So I started searching the market to see if there is a wheelchair with toilet facility. There were wheelchairs with toilet facilities! But if we look at what’s missing, they don’t have any facility for users to self-clean after natural wear and tear. So I set out to create a self-cleaning wheelchair with toilet facilities. And it has been successful,” explains Shruti Babu.
How Sahayata Works
On how his product works, he says, “Sahayada looks like a normal wheelchair. But it will function not only as a wheelchair, but also as a toilet and with the technology to cleanse the body,” he says.
“We’ve done some designing to minimize the natural damage under the seat of the chair. Most importantly, we have installed some technical systems in it to make it self-cleaning. The entire technology of the chair is designed to be user-friendly. But after minus the natural damage, we designed the technology to clean the body in a battery-powered way.
Let’s call this Bide Technology. This is a technology already used in modern toilet designs. But I am the first person in the world to design and install this technology in a wheelchair.
Sahayada users only need help from others to pick up and dispose of the waste after they have defecated and cleaned themselves. It is a minimal help,” explains Shrutibabu.
Success in testing
“We think the product we’ve created is good. But it is only when we hear the feedback from those who use it that we know if the product has really evolved in a meaningful way.
So after the formation of Sahayada, I went to many hospitals to check. But it was Chennai Tagore Medical College, a private medical college, that allowed us to test it on their patients. Then the people there showed great interest to know about it and use it.
Those who tried it said it was comfortable. What’s surprising is that at the very spot where the trial went, we got 50 bookings to buy Sahayada. This is the success of my production,” exults Shruti Babu.
”I must also mention another incident in this. An old man used by Sahayada came to me and thanked me with tears in his eyes. He said that after eating, he would have defecation, and because of that, his son had not eaten until he came home in the evening. His words moved me.
” At first I made this wheelchair in only one model. It can be used as a chair and can also be used as a bed. But some said we don’t need any bedding. So now I have developed two types of wheelchairs, one that can only operate as a wheelchair and another with bed facilities,” he notes.
A supportive father
Shruti with father Babu
“Technology and format of Sahayada is my brainchild. But my father has been my biggest strength in trying to make it,” says Shruti.
He added, “My father is a mechanical engineer. He used to work in a small workshop. It was my responsibility to handle the medical requirement, design etc. of the Sahayada. My father handled the selection of materials and technical design to make it.
A total of 118 prototypes were created and tested. All failed. Especially the first form that was created looked like a robot. When we took it to the hospital, we were not allowed inside. They said that the robot is scary to look at.
After several iterations, the wheelchair evolved into its current form. My father supported me in all my endeavours. We established “Dhanvantri Biomedical” to properly market this product.
After Sahayada took full shape, I went to Chennai to learn how to market it and to attend an exhibition. I was getting ready to attend the fair when I got a call from home. They said my father had died of a heart attack. I am completely broken by that burden,” says Shruti, distraught at the memories of her father.
“After my father’s death, the responsibility of the family came to me. I have to take care of my mother and younger brother. More than anything else, I had the ambition to make this venture that I started with my father a success,” he says.
It is not easy for a woman to progress alone
”In the three months following my father’s death, I worked hard and brought my special wheelchair to market. I participated in many commercial events and promoted it.
But nothing came easy to me. As a woman, especially a middle-class woman, it was very challenging for me to face everything.
B.R. Doctor Krishnakumar was my guide on this journey. The production of this chair is still going on in a small space he gave me. Also my family stood by me in all situations. My husband encourages me to do what I love. I have to keep moving forward because of the trust they have in me.
Even recently, I participated in a “shark tank” program and received an investment of nearly one crore rupees for this wheelchair. So I am going to carry this product in a big way from now on. I have launched an initiative to bring at least 10,000 chairs to people in the next five years. My next ambition is that people across India and the world should benefit from this and their self-respect should be protected,” says Shruti Babu with confidence.
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