Mithun Shirodkar
Mithun Shirodkar was working on house repairs with a carpenter at Paithona-Salvador do Mundo in Porvorim on May 26 in 2016 and a mishap occurred. He lost his balance and fell down from a height of 4.5 metres on a wooden cupboard and was unconscious.
The family took him to Goa Medical College & Hospital and a surgery was performed after four days of the accident, however the damage had already occurred. Mithun lost his ability to sit, stand or walk and became a person with 100% disability due to his spinal injury.
“I was bedridden for seven long years, unable to move. With paralysis in both the legs, I could not even get up from the bed and even had bed sores,” recalls Mithun, the fourth of six siblings.
“My family was not financially well-off. We did not have any support to go or try for special treatments. My father, a tailor, had already died in 2008. Mother was a homemaker. I had recently got a job then,” says Mithun who studied at Sunandabai Bandodkar High School at Britona till SSC. After doing a wireman’s course at ITI in Bicholim he had started repairing electrical appliances at a shop in Panaji. And then this accident occurred, leaving him with lifelong disability.
Mithun’s three brothers Nitin, Sachin and Kundan stood strongly in support, not considering him a burden. They were kind, generous and emphatic, and left no stone unturned to look after Mithun who was financially dependent for many years, and received a small amount under the Dayanand Samajik Suraksha Yojana.
“Unable to move from my bed, I had to be lifted and carried. A difficult task, but my brothers managed it well, taking leave from work whenever required. I was taken for regular check-ups, and physiotherapy sessions. As there is no direct access to the main road, it was difficult for me to go out. Every time I left my house for any visit, I had to be carried by two people,” admits Mithun.
Moral support from his family, physiotherapy and Mithun’s own will to be self-dependent helped him to get up from the bed, albeit with some help. After managing to sit on a wheelchair, he tried to take few steps with the help of a walker. Then with leg support and a walking stick he took first few steps.
And that was when he enjoyed freedom to attend social events, mix with the society and come out of his depression. Once Mithun began to attend social events, sitting on a wheelchair, he met many friends who were persons with disability (PwD) and among them was Vishant Nagvenkar.
“Vishant’s entry in my life came as a blessing. He motivated me to come out of my shell, and mix with people. That helped me get out of the depression and the feeling of hopelessness. I began to engage in sports activities. Other PwDs also boosted my spirit. We played various sports. I began to travel by an auto to join them to play on weekends. I learnt to ride a scooter. Now, I can ride from my home to the shop where I work, which is two km away,” points out Mithun who participated for the first time in a marathon race in 2024.
Now he plays table tennis, badminton, cricket, basketball “ all games, sitting on his wheelchair and is a part of the group of 100 plus PwDs who keep motivating each other.
“I use wheelchair 90% of the time only for sports, while playing the games. Rest of the time I try to walk with the help of support. I can sit for some time now. It was because of the wheelchair donated by the Rotary Club that I could move out of my home, mix with people, try to learn sports and become independent.
"My brothers had to take half day leave to take me out and bring me home. Now I am self-dependent, can go to work on my bike. I still need to be brought in and out of the home to the road carrying but thankfully, there’s no medical issue now,” shares a happy Mithun who goes out to play every Sunday.
Today, at 42, unmarried Mithun is happy that he has recently got a job at a shop that repairs electrical appliances like fans and mixers.
For people like him his message is, “Be consistent, persistent and playful. Sports will keep you motivated, so participate in whichever sport you like. Take the first step, however small it may be. Come out, mix and mingle, smile and laugh, the world is beautiful. Don’t be ashamed of yourself. Trust yourself and your loved ones. They will always be at your side.”
