India’s ambition to become a developed nation by 2047 is often discussed through the language of highways, airports, digital public infrastructure, defence manufacturing, semiconductor policy, artificial intelligence and medical technology. But another form of national infrastructure deserves equal attention: the ability to restore mobility, dignity and economic participation to citizens who have lost a limb.
A recent Hindustan Times Insight article by Nagender Parashar and Pilot Neeraj Sehrawat argues that artificial limbs should no longer be viewed simply as welfare devices or charity items. Instead, prosthetics must be treated as “human capital infrastructure” — essential tools that help amputees return to work, school, family life and social participation. The article calls for a National Prosthetics Mission that links access, affordability, technology, rehabilitation, manufacturing and livelihood reintegration.
For India’s prosthetics and orthotics sector, this is an important policy argument. It moves the discussion beyond distribution numbers and asks a more serious question: are people actually walking, working, learning and living better after receiving a prosthetic limb?
From Distribution to Long-Term Rehabilitation
India has made visible progress in assistive device access. The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities runs the ADIP Scheme, which aims to support persons with disabilities in obtaining durable, modern and scientifically manufactured aids and appliances that promote physical, social and psychological rehabilitation.
The Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India has also played a central role in device provision through government programmes. Its Pradhan Mantri Divyasha Kendra model is designed as a one-stop access point for assessment, counselling, distribution and post-distribution support. The 75th PMDK was inaugurated in Badaun, Uttar Pradesh, with services covering devices such as artificial limbs, wheelchairs, walkers, hearing aids and other mobility support products under ADIP and Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana.
However, the next stage for India is not just more camps or more distributed devices. It is the creation of a full rehabilitation pathway. A prosthetic limb is not a one-day intervention. It requires assessment, casting or scanning, fitting, alignment, gait training, physiotherapy, socket adjustments, repairs, replacement, counselling and follow-up.
This is especially important for children, people with diabetes, traumatic amputees, women in rural areas, workers injured in industrial accidents and veterans who require higher-performance rehabilitation. Success should not only be measured by the number of limbs fitted, but by whether the user is still using the device after one year, whether they have returned to work or education, and whether the prosthesis remains comfortable, safe and appropriate for Indian terrain.
Why Prosthetics Belong Inside Public Health
The World Health Organization notes that people who use prostheses and orthoses need regular access to prosthetics and orthotics services delivered by qualified teams with appropriate workshop facilities. It also highlights that in many countries, access remains limited to those who can afford high out-of-pocket payments.
This is highly relevant to India. Prosthetic care often falls between several policy areas: disability welfare, public health, medical devices, social justice, insurance, defence rehabilitation, skilling, manufacturing and employment. Each area touches one part of the problem, but amputee rehabilitation needs an integrated system.
A National Prosthetics Mission could bring these pieces together. It could link district hospitals, medical colleges, rehabilitation centres, prosthetists and orthotists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers, insurers, employers, manufacturers and skilling agencies into one coordinated pathway.
For Bharat CPO readers, the message is clear: prosthetic care should be recognised as a core rehabilitation service, not an optional welfare add-on.
Five Priorities for a National Prosthetics Mission
A serious national mission should begin with the principle that no amputee should be denied mobility because of income, geography or lack of awareness.
First, prosthetic care should be included across public health and insurance schemes. Coverage should extend beyond the device itself to include clinical assessment, fitting, physiotherapy, socket replacement, maintenance, repair and follow-up. For many users, the socket and aftercare determine whether a prosthesis is successful.
Second, India needs stronger district-level prosthetic and rehabilitation access. PMDKs provide a useful foundation, but the next step should be deeper links with district hospitals, medical colleges and regional rehabilitation centres. Rural users should not have to travel hundreds of kilometres for basic prosthetic assessment or repair.
Third, India should prioritise indigenous prosthetic manufacturing. Imported components are often unaffordable for many users, while low-cost solutions may not always meet long-term functional needs. India has the engineering talent, MSME base, clinical expertise and manufacturing capacity to build rugged, affordable and high-quality prosthetic systems designed for local users.
Fourth, rehabilitation must be connected to livelihood. A prosthetic limb is a bridge back to school, employment, self-employment and family income. Programmes such as Skill India, CSR initiatives, Mudra finance, employer incentives and vocational rehabilitation should be linked with prosthetic rehabilitation so that mobility leads to real economic reintegration.
Fifth, India must invest in technology while keeping users at the centre. Artificial intelligence, 3D printing, smart sensors, lightweight composites, modular componentry and digital measurement tools can improve fit, reduce cost and speed up service delivery. But innovation must be clinically validated and shaped by amputee feedback, not only by laboratory design.
Opportunity for India’s P&O Sector
For Indian prosthetists, orthotists, rehabilitation physicians, physiotherapists, manufacturers and startups, this debate creates a major opportunity. Prosthetics is not a small assistive-device category. It sits at the intersection of healthcare, disability inclusion, manufacturing, defence rehabilitation, public procurement, social impact and export potential.
India can become a global hub for affordable prosthetic care, especially for the Global South. But this will require investment in quality standards, clinical training, outcome measurement, testing infrastructure, component certification and transparent procurement systems.
Manufacturers need predictable demand and access to user feedback. Startups need regulatory clarity and innovation support. Hospitals need trained multidisciplinary teams. Policymakers need reliable data on amputation, device use, abandonment, repair needs and long-term outcomes. Users need a system that sees them not as beneficiaries of charity, but as citizens with the right to mobility and participation.
The Bharat CPO View
The Hindustan Times article is important because it reframes artificial limbs as part of India’s development infrastructure. A prosthesis can restore a worker’s income, help a child return to school, reduce family dependency, support a veteran’s rehabilitation and allow an amputee to participate fully in society.
India’s disability and rehabilitation policy should therefore move from a distribution-led model to an outcomes-led model. The goal should not be only to fit more limbs. The goal should be to ensure that more people walk comfortably, return to work, stay active, access repairs, receive upgrades when needed and live with dignity.
Artificial limbs are not charity. They are public health, rehabilitation, manufacturing, livelihood and human capital infrastructure.
For Viksit Bharat, prosthetics and orthotics must move from the margins of welfare policy to the centre of national development strategy.
- Hindustan Times Insight: “Artificial limbs are human capital infrastructure”
- Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities: ADIP Scheme
- ALIMCO official website: Assistive device access and services
- PIB release: PMDK Badaun and assistive device access
- WHO: Prosthetics and orthotics services