CHENNAI: For people with limited mobility, even the simplest daily tasks can demand the constant presence of another person. While necessity may be the mother of invention, for Sruthi Babu, it was empathy that pushed her to give the conventional wheelchair a much-needed facelift, with the aid of technology. The mighty struggles she had witnessed in hospital wards fuelled Sruthi and her late father to spend five years innovating Sahayatha, a revolutionary wheelchair with a built-in, automatic cleaning system to empower the lives of persons with disabilities (PwDs).
The 30-year-old biomedical engineer, driven by the desire to use technology to address social challenges, began her journey towards creating Sahayatha in 2018, when she was selected as a ‘Sparsh Fellow’ under the Social Innovation and Immersion Programme of the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC). As part of the fellowship, Sruthi visited several hospitals to identify real-world healthcare problems that could be solved through innovation. She spent the first six months dedicated to identifying issues with significant societal and medical impact.
“During those months, I spent time in hospitals, observing and speaking with patients and caregivers,” Sruthi recalls. “I saw how those with limited mobility had to rely on others even for basic hygiene, something that deeply moved me.”
Her subsequent research revealed that nearly three crore people in India, including PwDs and the elderly, struggle with similar issues. “While wheelchairs with attached toilets exist, none have a built-in cleaning system to clean up after excretion. That is when my late father, a mechanical engineer, and I decided to put in the hard yards to make this a reality,” she said.
Together, they designed Sahayatha, a compact wheelchair equipped with an assistive cleansing system. At first glance, it looks like a standard wheelchair, but with the press of a switch, it activates a gentle water spray that automatically cleans after use, drawing from a 3-litre inbuilt tank. Waste is collected in a detachable box that can be easily removed and cleaned from the rear. The wheelchair also alerts users when the water level or battery is low. One model features a reclining backrest that folds flat like a bed, while another remains upright. Priced at Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000 respectively, both models are foldable and portable, making them ideal for use at home, hospitals, or even during travel.
However, the biomedical engineer remarked that developing the product was not a cakewalk. “My father and I began working on Sahayatha during my two-year fellowship and launched our company, Dhanvantri Biomedical Private Limited, in 2019. Keeping patient comfort in mind, we went through more than 118 designs and tested each prototype in hospitals for mandatory patient trials and certification. We finally launched the product in 2023,” Sruthi said with a smile.
Today, Sahayatha is patented in India, with both design and trademark protection. A Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) application has been filed across 140 countries, and the US patent is in process. Since its launch, the company has sold over 400 units, and Sruthi’s innovation has caught national attention. She appeared on Shark Tank India Season 2, where she secured a five-shark deal with Rs 1 crore in funding for 10% equity in her company. More recently, her firm Dhanvantri Biomedical Private Limited received the CavinKare–MMA ChinniKrishnan Innovation Award for the groundbreaking invention.
“For me, Sahayatha is not just a product,” Sruthi says. “It’s a promise of dignity for every person who wishes to live life independently.”
(Edited by Rohith Sony)
