Pledging eyes offline can be a cumbersome process and do-gooders may not know where to start. To address this issue and bridge the gap between demand and supply, Narayana Nethralaya, through its Dr Rajkumar Eye Bank, has launched an exclusive number 888401880 to which anyone can just give a missed call if they wish to donate their eyes.
The number was announced by Raghavendra Rajkumar, brother of actor Puneeth Rajkumar, at the Samadhi where he along with some of his family members had come to pay his respects.
"The eye bank will send a link to a form that has to be filled out to complete the formality of pledging. Once the form is filled out and submitted, the intended donor will immediately get an eye pledge certificate and further instructions for eventual eye donation," said Dr Bhujang Shetty, adding that the donor can donate anywhere.
Two months ago, the Rajkumar family donated Puneeth's eyes to four people.
"Donating Puneeth's eyes gave us strength. We feel that four people are now seeing us through his eyes. In COVID-19 times, we may not be able to step out and pledge our eyes but through this missed call feature, one can get the donor certificate on WhatsApp," Raghavendra said.
After Puneeth Rajkumar's eyes were donated, the Dr Rajkumar eye bank at Narayana Nethralaya saw 1200 pledges to donate eyes, of which 440 people ended up doing so.
“I am expecting at least seven lakh people to pledge their eyes soon with the missed phone call facility we have launched,” Dr Shetty said. Raghavendra said there is a message in Puneeth's death and that there should be no blindness in India.