VOA标准英语2012--India Charity Offers Amputees Escape From Poverty Trap

India Charity Offers Amputees Escape From Poverty Trap

 

Losing a limb¹ is traumatic in any circumstances, but it can become a poverty trap for those without access to advanced medical care. The Indian state of Rajasthan is home to one of the world's largest charities devoted² to empowering amputees by giving them new prosthetic limbs³, and a new life.

Two-year-old Vaishnavi's mother loves her very much. She takes good care of her daughter and handles her surprisingly well - considering she has no arms.

Sangeeta explains that she lost her arms as a result of electrocution. She says she was working near electrical lines and water spilled onto a metal rod she was carrying.

She and her family have come to this Jaipur facility to receive a set of replacement⁴ arms.
It is known locally as Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahitya Samiti, but more commonly referred to by its most famous product: "Jaipur Foot."

More than one and a quarter million patients have received prosthetic legs, knees, arms, and hands produced by the facility since it was founded in 1975.

"Nobody has to write to us," said Mehta. "They just walk in. Immediately they arrive, they are admitted. They are given food. They are given all facilities, given limbs in two or three days and they go back."

Amputees are seen during a free distribution of ‘Jaipur Foot’ in Mumbai, India. (File Photo)

D.R. Mehta, a former civil servant, started Jaipur Foot after an accident decades ago nearly cost him his own foot. The months he spent recovering in the hospital put him in contact with fellow Indians who were not so fortunate - most of them from among the country's poorest people.

"Losing a limb also meant losing economic status," he said. "They [the victims] cease to be useful. They lose respect even in the house."

Sangeeta understands very well the economic burden a lost limb can put on an entire family.

She says cooking food is a big problem. Her husband does the cooking, she says, so he often is late to work or cannot work at all. She says they sometimes have to ask the neighbors for help. It's a big hassle, she says.

"It's so satisfying for me, personally," said Mehta. "A person comes in crawling. He gets a limb in a day or two, for no charge at all, and walks out - like you and me, making a truncated⁵ being whole again. Seeing them going back and working in the field, working in the factory, it's not merely giving a limb - it's restoring their economic power."

Even patients who could afford other treatment options come to Jaipur Foot because of its reputation for quality.

"I'm from Penang, Malaysia. When I was nine, I had an accident. A truck ran over me and they couldn't save the foot," said a female patient. "So I've been wearing a prosthesis since I was nine, and I'm 40 now. I came to get a new prosthesis. It's always been a dream to come to Jaipur to get a Jaipur prosthesis. So it's like a dream come true. I can't wait to get moving!"

Jaipur Foot receives about a third of its funding directly from the Indian government. The rest comes from corporate⁶ and private donors⁷.

It operates limb replacement camps in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and many other countries where war and landmines⁸ have robbed people of limbs.

As for Sangeeta - it will take some time and practice for her to master using her new limbs to grasp objects. She says she looks forward to resuming⁹ work in the kitchen - and to brushing her own hair.

1 limb   

n.树枝，四肢，枝干，边缘；vt.切断手足，切断树干

参考例句：

• She sat on a limb of the tree and looked down.她坐在一根大树枝上往下看。
• His refusal to agree left him out on a limb.他拒不表示同意，致使自己处于孤立地位。

2 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

3 limbs   

肢( limb的名词复数 )； 大树枝； 肢体

参考例句：

• For a while, she lost the use of her limbs. 好一会儿她四肢都动弹不得。
• The prisoner's limbs flailed violently because of the pain. 那囚犯因为疼痛，四肢剧烈地抖动着。

4 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

5 truncated   

adj.切去顶端的，缩短了的，被删节的v.截面的( truncate的过去式和过去分词 )；截头的；缩短了的；截去顶端或末端

参考例句：

• My article was published in truncated form. 我的文章以节录的形式发表了。
• Oligocene erosion had truncated the sediments draped over the dome. 覆盖于穹丘上的沉积岩为渐新世侵蚀所截削。 来自辞典例句

6 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

7 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 landmines   

潜在的冲突； 地雷，投伞水雷( landmine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The treaty bans the use production and trade of landmines. 该条约规定，禁止使用地雷相关产品及贸易。
• One of the weapon's of special concern was landmines. 在引起人们特别关注的武器中就有地雷。

9 resuming   

v.重新开始( resume的现在分词 )；重新获得；重新占用；恢复

参考例句：

• It was a strange experience, like suddenly resuming a previous incarnation. 这真是一个离奇的经验，好像突然回到了前世一样。
• He ate a snack before resuming work. 他吃了一份快餐而后继续工作。