Blindness Eradication

India shoulders the heaviest burden of blindness in the world. Globally, 1 out of every 3 blind people (an estimated 15 million) live in India, with cataract being the primary cause behind the blindness. Bihar is the worst hit with a backlog of 7,00,000 blind and 4.3 million visually impaired people. Additionally, 1,00,000 people become blind every year due to ageing. With the lowest per capita income and HDI (Human Development Index), Bihar lags in all aspects of poverty, health, education and overall well-being. Bihar has extremely low CSC (Cataract Surgical Coverage) rate – more than half the population DO NOT have access to cataract surgery. Blind people suffer from poverty, malnutrition, non-availability of education, economic and social isolation. These cascading effects affect the blind and their families and ultimately the community at large.

According to WHO, cataract surgery is one of the 10 best interventions to reduce poverty. Immediately after surgery the person regains sight and gets back to earning. Since the last 14 years, Akhand Jyoti has been working in low-income regions, towards eradication curable blindness by doing sight-restoring surgeries and providing comprehensive eye care to the indigent people. Doing over 65,000 surgeries annually (of which 80% is free to poor) Akhand Jyoti has emerged as the largest eye hospital in Eastern India and amongst the top 5 in India. Our outreach team ventures in to the rural hinterlands of Bihar and Eastern UP to do primary screening and identity patients with bilateral cataracts (cataract in both eyes), bring them in our hospitals for the surgery in our own transport and leave them at their places back again after their vision is restored. We plan to increase our surgical capacity to 2,00,000 surgeries annually by 2022.

Akhand Jyoti's vision is to eradicate curable blindness from low-income regions by giving sight to underprivileged blind people and there by restoring their livelihood. A sight-restoring surgery not only restores the sight of the person but also his dignity and income. Immediately after surgery the person regains sight and gets back to earning and so it helps in reducing poverty and inequality of the community.

This campaign is targeted to raise a fund of Rs 3,50,000 to give sight to 100 poor blind people and help them see again. These 100 blind people will not only get their sight back but also their earning capacity. They will have equal opportunities in life while emerging out from the curse of darkness and isolation. Giving someone sight is not only helping the person but the community at large.