Set up on 14 April 1986 in Chennai by Meena Dadha, Mukti Clinic continues to raise funds to treat, free of charge, around 30 patients every day and gives amputees and the polio-striken the ability to walk, work, be independent and dream again. With priority given to children and young people, this clinic attracted the attention of The University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and since 2011 it continues to send a team of professional prosthetists and orthotists drawn from students and staff of its Department of Biomedical Engineering to Mukti on an annual basis to assist with instruction and clinical treatment. Lakshmi Iyer is part of a four-member university team that will undertake a 79-mile walk through Scotland to raise funds for the clinic. Excerpts from an interview:

What role does your university play in the Mukti project and what is your involvement?

The University of Strathclyde is home to one of the leading centres in prosthetics and orthotics in Europe and each year it trains professionals who work at home in the UK and abroad. As well as producing practitioners, many of the alumni are involved in teaching and research.

Each year, since 2011, a small team of students and staff travel to South India to work at the Mukti Clinic. For Strathclyde students, this is a wonderful opportunity to gain hands-on experience with different technologies and in a very different culture. It also gives clinic staff the opportunity to work with the our academics and exchange ideas on clinical practices. Supplies and equipment are expensive and I hope to be able to raise at least  £3,000 to allow Mukti Clinic to purchase some essential requirements. I did my Master&’s in International Marketing at Strathclyde in 2000-2001 as a DFID scholar and have kept in close touch. I  am now director and head of education at Sannam S4 Management Services in India, which offers professional support to the Faculty of Engineering in its activities in India.

How is this walk going to be different from your previous treks and what challenges would you expect to face?

I was a student at the university in 2000 and I love Scotland and its beautiful scenery. I have already walked two of its most famous treks — the West Highland Way  (97 miles from Glasgow to Fort William) and the Speyside Way (65 miles from Buckie to Aviemore). This third walk, the Great Glen Way, is 79 miles — from Fort William to Inverness. I am a relatively experienced walker and with a good pair of boots and adequate rain gear I expect to complete this third trek.

This time I will be walking with three friends from Scotland and I really want to raise as much money as I can for the Mukti Clinic. I feel privileged to be able to help in any small way.

The Mukti charity has been arranging prosthetic limbs for the poor with help from University of Strathclyde experts. How would you encourage your Indian students to develop ideas in such useful fields as prosthetics to help the needy?

It is true that training professional prosthetists is more advanced and more extensive in Europe than it is in India. Biomedical engineering is an upcoming field in India and Strathclyde is now working with the Biomedical Department at MIT in Manipal. Each year, Strathclyde issues a challenge to its students, inviting them to submit a plan on how they would improve prosthetic training and treatment in India. The prize for the team that comes up with the best ideas is awarded an all expenses paid visit to the Centre for Prosthetics and Orthotics at Strathclyde where they work with students and staff before returning to India with a Strathclyde team to work at Mukti Clinic.

Strathclyde also works with a number of professionals in the field of prosthetics and during the last visit to the Mukti clinic they ran a series of presentations and workshops for Indian professionals.

India has around six million amputees and a growing problem of diabetes — one of the main causes of amputation in the country — and the existing services are simply unable to cope. This is why organisations like Mukti are so vital and I am so happy to be able to support them.

What kind of support and encouragement have you received from Indian organisations towards your fund-raiser?

I have received huge support from family, friends and colleagues for this walk and to date we have received £2,894 in sponsorship. But I am hoping the money will keep coming in until after the walk finishes on 14 September. This is my way of giving back to a university that has been responsible for changing my world view for the better and for helping me make some friends around the world for life. I am really delighted that the good work being done has a deep and meaningful connection with India.

Here is a link for details: https://2015greatglenwalk.everydayhero.com/uk/team-walking-for-change

What are your future goals? And tell us about the awareness you plan to raise among the public regarding the Mukti project?

At the moment my goal is to raise as much money as I can through the Great Glen Way walk. Colleagues back at university also raise funds and one student recently did a sponsored bike ride from Scotland all the way to Spain! The university&’s alumni group in India supports Mukti Clinic and a newly formed group in Mumbai will also help.

As for future walking, next year we are planning an even longer one for Mukti!