Jungali, 60, and his wife Laxmamma, 56, live in a village in the state of Telangana, India. Their three children have all married and settled elsewhere, leaving the two of them to fend for themselves.
The couple struggled to make ends meet. To make matters worse, Jungali began to lose his eyesight and was unable to work. Laxmamma got a job as a daily wage labourer to provide for herself and her husband as best she could.
Within a span of 10 months, Jungali had lost his vision completely. He went into a deep depression, feeling it was a shame to be confined to his home and be dependent on his wife. He prayed for an early death to be relieved of his suffering.
Thankfully, Jungali soon had his eyesight, and his dignity, restored. Sunitha, a community health worker from St. Gregorios Balagram Eye Hospital went in search of Jungali. You see, two years prior the hospital had conducted a door-to-door survey as part of a community eye health program. During the survey, they discovered that Jungali had poor vision and would require treatment.
Sunitha brought him to a screening program organized by the hospital’s medical team. They confirmed that Jungali was suffering from bilateral cataracts.
Though he didn’t have any money, Jungali was transported to the hospital, where he underwent cataract surgery on both eyes within a span of three months. All of this was made possible by Operation Eyesight’s generous donors.
After his first surgery, Jungali started a small candy store near the school in his village. He is now earning enough money to cover household expenses. Now that he can see better with both eyes, he wants to expand his shop and increase his earnings.
When Sunita recently visited Jungali for a follow-up examination, she found that he was happy and doing well. As Jungali says, “My thanks cannot be expressed in a few words.”
On behalf of Jungali and the many others who have had their sight restored, we would like to thank our donors for their incredible support. Because of you, people like Jungali once again have hope for a better future!
