BENGALURU: The country needs more eye donors, said Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar.
Speaking at the inauguration of a private eye hospital, Sudhakar urged private hospitals to not only concentrate on establishing new facilities but also to create awareness about eye donation in society.
The country needs one lakh eye donations every year but has only 5 per cent of the required donors and it is important to create awareness regarding donation, said the minister.
“We are having a severe shortage of eye donors. Only 5% of the required eye donors are donating their eyes. Especially during the Covid times, that donation has further taken a hit. The government will always support such noble causes and we also promote the establishment of such eye hospitals in the state,” said Sudhakar, regarding the Agarwal Eye hospital’s vision for expansion in the state,”
He further encouraged private hospitals to conduct eye camps in rural areas to encourage citizens to seek treatment early on and receive appropriate surgery. Over the next three years, Dr. Agarwal’s Eye Hospital plans to invest over Rs 175 crore in expanding its presence in Karnataka.
“Our largest presence is in Karnataka. We have 11 hospitals in Bengaluru alone. Bengaluru needs more such hospitals," said Adil Agarwal, CEO of Dr. Agarwal’s Eye Hospital regarding their expansion plans in the state. The newly inaugurated center in Indiranagar will be the base for all the refractive surgeries performed by the hospital in the state.