Since the last few months, I have met several disabled soldiers of the earlier conflicts, who had lost their limbs and found to my distress, that artificial hands have often been stored in the cupboards. The users have complained that these artificial hands are too heavy to carry along and prove cumbersome in day-to-day activities. Thus, the rehabilitation process so kindly carried out by the Artificial Limb Centre is nullified in most of these cases.

The technology of artificial limbs has jumped by leaps and bounds. But not at the ALC where people who have dedicated their life for the nation, are given a treatment that is outdated. They cannot be given the state-of-the-art artificial limbs manufactured in India. Young Captain Pradhan has been fighting relentlessly, in the Kargil conflict from May to July 28 (when the mishap took place) and says that he must have walked at least 300 to 400 km to neutralise mine fields, during those three challenging months. Mostly, the movement used to be after twilight, so one can imagine how many nights he was awake, like hundreds of other young officers and jawans. Pradhan says smilingly (one has to admire his spirit) that the ALC has informed him that he would be provided with more sophisticated artificial hand and fingers.

While this is good news, another veteran of the 1965 Indo-Pak conflict, Lt.Col S.S.Sawhney (retd) states,`` Battle casualties have started pouring into Pune and pretty soon the Artificial Limb Centre will have to cater to gallant persons who have become disabled. Loss of a limb is a permanent disability and the affected person becomes a patient of the ALC for life, as they need to come in frequently for repairs and refits. The ordinary man cannot imagine the trauma involved in losing a limb.'

Sawhney is agonised that ``things at the ALC have only deteriorated over the years and persons who have lost limbs are being fitted with the same type of prothesis that were being made here over 35 years ago. Whereas considerable improvements have been made worldwide in this field, our soldiers continue to get limbs that are heavy, clumsy and often, uncomfortable and ill-fitting.''

Sawhney himself lost one of his legs during the 1965 conflict. His grouse is that ``Patients who have lost their legs are still being provided with heavy and cumbersome prosthesis with the solid rubber foot (Sach foot) of over 30-year-old technology. Some pieces of the Krisinger foot were imported in 1971 from Germany but the ALC went back to the heavy Sach foot. ALC is also making the wooden limbs with plastic/fibre glass sockets and leather lining whereas far superior, lighter and stronger material limbs using latest technology and materials are available which are more comfortable and make for better mobility.''

Sawhney has himself switched over to better quality artificial leg since the last two years and finds that, his movement has become more comfortable. Till recently, he says, he has been carrying the burdensome leg provided by the ALC that has caused him innumerable moments of physical and mental agony.

Now, that magnanimous cash donations, from every corner of the country have flown into the Army Central Welfare Fund, I believe to the tune of Rs 200 crore, it is high time that the disabled soldiers are facilitated with state-of-the-art artificial limbs, so that they can live with dignity and lesser physical pain, for the rest of their lives. After all most of them are in their twenties. Otherwise, it seems as if artificial limbs are being fitted just for the heck of it.