Rickshaw for differently abled individuals in Pakistan

Keeping in mind the predicament of people with disabilities, the Network of Organisation Working for People with Disabilities Pakistan (NOWPDP) launched a rickshaw project in first week of June. According to Amin Amir Andani, NOWPDP’s external engagement manager, “the primary objective of this project is to empower the differently abled individuals economically.

With this project, disabled people will be able to earn their own income and not be a burden on their families. Initially, the rickshaw project has started in Karachi and so far, five drivers are inducted by the organisation. Andani added that the organisation plans to hand over 100 more rickshaws to the disabled individuals by the end of this year.

The white retrofitted rickshaws have bird wings painted on the front. The four-seated rickshaws are fitted with a steering handle and they are hand-controlled as the control of the gear, clutch and accelerator are all fixed to the steering handle while brake is an elevated lever. Other than that, all of the rickshaws are fitted with microphones, as the network will soon set up a call centre to coordinate between drivers and customers. Trakkar systems have been installed to help inform people at the office about their exact location. Each rickshaw also has a meter and they plan to fix the rates between Rs10 and 12 per kilometre. Andani further said that these retrofitted rickshaws are manufactured by Sazgar, the local rickshaw manufacturing company in Pakistan.

 Imran Ghanchi is the chief driver at NOWPDP who first started driving retrofitted rickshaw in 2012 when the organisation began their pilot project in 2012. It was with the help of polio stricken Ghanchi that the rickshaws were modified in accordance to the needs for the differently abled individuals.

 Before handing over the hand-controlled rickshaws, the organisation has trained individuals for three months. This includes learning about traffic rules and road signs as well as basic automotive repair. Andani is hopeful that these rickshaws will provide a sustainable mobility solution for differently abled individuals in the long run