'APD has given me a second life. I think Mary Thomas is great. She's like my mother. She helped me a lot. I don't have anybody else. Nobody was there to help me in my family. My wife used to tell me bitterly, 'This is your life, this room. Just manage here.' Now she is happy.'

These are the words of Jayakumar, a normal person leading a routine life. A tumble from an auto-rickshaw turned his life upside down. His spine got damaged in the fall and for two years, he spent life primarily by looking out of the window. Life changed after Mary Thomas gentle visits persuaded him to try to make efforts to come out from his shell.

'It's all about will power and courage,' he sums up. 'I now visit paraplegics in their homes, encouraging them. I climb up to the third floor if need be, to meet them. I believe uneducated paraplegics should be trained in a vocation where they can use their hands and earn some money.'