This is the story of Kanhaiya Lal Nagpal, afflicted with paraplegia. He is a witty, vivacious and dynamic man. He enjoys good food and an occasional drink with friends. He was a happily married man with his wife and son aged seven living in a two-room apartment and working as a purchase officer in private firm dealing in chemicals. While riding a sector in July 1980, he met with a road accident leading to paraplegia. He laid unconscious for four days and woke up to the rude shock that he had permanently damaged his spinal cord and was paralaysed waist down with no bowl and bladder control. As at that time, Delhi doctors had gone on strike, he had to seek further treatment in Lucknow at K.G. Medical College under Dr. Sushila Varma, a specialist in spinal cord injury. There he learnt to get his bladder and bowl under some control, which helped him to remain free from sores, thus making him independent and mobile.

On his return from Lucknow he realized that his job, money and friends had gone- all in the same order. He then joined his old office, but now in a wheelchair. The turning point in his life came when his old employer paid a much less salary to him. This desk work in which he had to sit upright was agonizingly painful. Nagpal however was made of sterner stuff, with courage, determination and strong will, he gradually trained himself to put in a full day's work.

The pay cheque that he got was too meagre in comparison to the other employees in a similar job. This discriminating attitude of his employer set him thinking of other options. He then borrowed Rs. 15,000/- to set up his own chemical business for which he had the requisite experience. When his business brightened up Kanhaiya Lal got himself a motorized tricycle which he could manoeuvre with his upper limbs, increasing his mobility and hence business. Simultaneously he continued with exercise regimen in his house setting up parallel bars to strengthen his upper and lower limbs keeping them free from contractures and deformities as he was advised by Dr. Varma. This made it possible for him to shift his position in bed and on his tricycle by himself.

Nagpal flourished in his business and in 1985, he got his first car, an imported Toyota designed for the disabled people. Life became a little more complicated when after a chemical leak in Delhi, the authorities moved 150-200 chemical units out to Loni, more than 25 kms away. But Nagpal took the extra driving and longer hours in his stride. No sooner did a challenge arise than he would generate the capability to deal with it. He pushed himself- his body, brain and will, to the limit and found within himself a huge hitherto unexplored potential. He laboured hard and continued to prosper and started to invest in real estate, agricultural land and in stocks and shares.

In the same year he lost his wife- 'She was my strength courage and stood by me hard times,' says K.L. Nagpal. He faced this grave loss with endurance and started grooming up Ajay, his son for business .