The state government has set up eye donation centres in 21 district hospitals in Haryana under the National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment.
Additional chief secretary, health, Rajeev Arora said these centres will help the health department clear backlog of corneal blindness in the state.
“Three new eye banks will be started soon in Karnal, Khanpur Kalan and Mewat medical colleges. All the 68 eye assistants in the state have been trained in cornea collection to overcome shortage of doctors. Anyone can call the toll-free number 108 for eye donation,” he said.
Arora said the main objectives of this programme is to reduce preventable blindness in Haryana, enhance community awareness on eye care and to secure co-ordination between government health facilities and medical colleges.
Emphasising on the importance of eye donation, he urged the public to come forward for this noble cause and said the role of NGOs and private practitioners is crucial for achieving better results in preventable vision impairment.