HYDERABAD: The sudden death of an 80-year-old who died after falling on the road led 14-year-old V Anjali and two of her friends from Peddapalli district, to come up with a ‘Friendly Stick’ for the differently-abled and elderly.
“Last year, our neighbour’s father fell down during his evening walk. He lay unconscious on the road for more than half an hour. By the time he was rushed to a hospital, it was too late. The incident shook me. Had his family known of the incident immediately, he would have survived. I thought a multi-purpose walking stick, with a GPS and sensor should be made to help people in these situations,” said Anjali.
Following this, Anjali discussed the idea with two of her school friends — K Vyashilini and A Harshita. The three young innovators worked under the guidance of their Zilla Parishad school teachers. They designed and developed a prototype of the walking stick in four months.
“Our multipurpose stick can be used not just as a walking stick but also as a folding chair. The stick is also equipped with lights to help users navigate in the dark. The most unique feature of this stick is that it will have a GPS system and an alert sensor to inform the family about the whereabouts of the user in case of a fall,” said Anjali, displaying her unique walking stick prototype at the Assistive Exhibition on Thursday.