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Mumbai gets an inclusive aqua therapy pool for children with disabilities
Supported by Orbis CSR, the facility offers free rehabilitation to children from low‑income families; 12‑year‑old boy with cerebral palsy takes first steps in water.
The Mithu Alur Centre for Disability Services (ADAPT) inaugurates an Aqua Therapy Pool to support children and adults with disabilities through water-based therapy, in Mumbai. (Express Photo by Akash Patil)
A 12‑year-old boy with cerebral palsy cycled and stretched his legs in water for the first time on Wednesday, as ADAPT (Able Disabled All People Together) inaugurated a new temperature‑controlled Aquatic Therapy Pool at its Bandra centre. The facility, built at a cost of Rs 40 lakh, was supported by Orbis Financial Corporation Limited under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme.
Harish Shinde (name changed) entered the pool with the help of his physiotherapist Dr Arunima Sharma, who guided him through leg and back movements on a movable platform. “He has taken only one intro session. I have seen the difference in children with cerebral palsy and autism. For kids who struggle to stand or maintain balance, aqua is a safe medium as the chance of falling reduces and weightlessness makes movements easier,” Dr Sharma said.
She cautioned that medical screening is essential before therapy, as conditions like active seizures or infections could be triggered by water.
The pool is equipped with a heat pump, pool lift seat and scissoring platform to ensure safety, and a filtration unit to maintain hygiene. Users are required to wear waterproof diapers and water‑friendly clothing during therapy sessions.
The aquatic therapy pool in Mumbai is equipped with a heat pump, pool lift seat and scissoring platform to ensure safety, and a filtration unit to maintain hygiene.
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The pool is four-feet deep, 13-feet wide and 12-feet long, with space for three therapists and three children at a time.
“This is a costly set‑up not easily available in the city. We thought ADAPT is a good organisation with trained therapists and doctors. Children from below poverty line families can avail the facility free of cost,” said Orbis President Upendra Tripathi, adding that aqua therapy sessions in Mumbai typically cost between Rs 700 and Rs 2,500, making them unaffordable for most families. Orbis has previously supported inclusive education for visually impaired children and rural school infrastructure.
Founded in 1972 by Padma Shri Dr Mithu Alur with just three children in Colaba, the ADAPT now serves over 3,000 children and 10,000 families annually across its centres in Colaba, Bandra, Dharavi and Chembur. Dr Alur said, “The setting up of the aquatic therapy pool was to bring accessibility and holistic rehabilitation, enabling individuals with disabilities to achieve greater independence, participation, and quality of life.”
She added that 54 years of experiential learning have shaped ADAPT’s pedagogy, and the organisation is “at the cusp of becoming a university.” ADAPT has already met education minister Dharmendra Pradhan to discuss the proposal. Its rural outreach project, “Reaching the Unreached”, is underway in Dahanu, Palghar district.
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Dr Alur said that 90 per cent of their children come from lower‑income families, often with parents working as auto‑rickshaw drivers. “Our dream is affordable, accessible and safe rehabilitation for children with disabilities. This is the only pool we have for all our centres, and we hope to expand with donor support,” she added.
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