Tyre blast took his vision but failed to puncture his life
He lost his vision while fixing a leak in a truck tyre.
In fact, the tyre blast was so powerful that its memory still sends shiver down his spine.
Traumatized and visionless, many thought Mohammad Azad will have to beg all through his life.
But he decided to get back to work. And since he knew nothing else, he resumed fixing punctures, hoping to spot the leaks, through his past skills, and at times by fluke.
The master craftsman that he was, he soon learned to detect even smallest of leaks in a tyre and repair them with precision — without any vision in his eyes.
Born in a poor family from Handia, Azad today detect leaks by placing the tyre near his face and identifying the spot from where the air is coming out.
Azad’s swiftness in unfastening big tyres and wheels of trucks and other bigger vehicles is unmatched, insist many who have seen him working.
In fact, his customers often get shocked when they come to know that Azad is visually impaired.
Having set up a small kiosk near Daraganj railway station, Azad migrated to Allahabad several years back since he had no money to build a house on a small piece of land that he owned.
He lives with his family of five daughters and three sons in a small shanty in the same locality. Financial crisis often tests him, but he says, he has never allowed his disability to become an obstacle in living with respect.
He has already married off his three daughters while his other children go to school. “I earn Rs 200 to 400 per day. The work increases during Magh Mela when there are too many vehicles in the area,” he says.
HIS CUSTOMERS OFTEN GET SHOCKED WHEN THEY COME TO KNOW THAT AZAD IS VISUALLY IMPAIRED.