This is a remarkable philanthropic initiative of Ekam Foundation and Sweekriti Sociocare Foundation, established to provide high-quality eye care to people who have traditionally faced barriers to accessing treatment. Inaugurated on 21 May 2026, the event brought together partners, donors, healthcare professionals and community leaders who shared a common vision: eliminating avoidable blindness through sustainable, people-centred eye care. 

A Shared Vision Beyond Infrastructure 

Operation Eyesight was honoured to be recognized during the inauguration for its contribution as a technical knowledge partner in shaping the hospital’s long-term vision. 

Our role extends beyond supporting the establishment of a healthcare facility. By sharing our decades of experience in community eye health, along with technical guidance from our long-standing partner, L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, we are helping lay the foundation for a sustainable eye health ecosystem that reaches people where they live. 

The Chaitanyam Eye Care Institute has been designed to perform approximately 4,000 free cataract surgeries every year, serving communities across Kolhapur and neighbouring districts. Equipped with modern infrastructure and advanced ophthalmic equipment made possible through generous philanthropic support, the hospital is well positioned to deliver high-quality clinical care for years to come. 

Building an Eye Health Ecosystem 

A modern hospital alone cannot eliminate avoidable blindness. Many people living in rural communities continue to face challenges related to awareness, affordability and accessibility. Unless these barriers are addressed, countless individuals will remain untreated despite the availability of excellent clinical services. 

This is where Operation Eyesight’s proven, decades-long Community Eye Health Model becomes critical. Rather than waiting for patients to seek care, the model takes eye care into the community—proactively identifying people with vision problems, creating awareness, and connecting them to timely diagnosis and treatment. By seamlessly integrating community outreach, primary eye care through Vision Centres, and specialized hospital services, it ensures a continuous continuum of care that is accessible, equitable, and sustainable. 

The model is built around three interconnected pillars: 

• Community eye care: Trained community health workers engage directly with villages through door-to-door visits, awareness programmes and vision screening activities, ensuring early detection and timely referral. 

• Quality Clinical Care: Patients identified through community outreach are connected to Vision Centres and, when required, referred to the base hospital for advanced diagnosis and treatment. Continuous knowledge sharing and capacity building help maintain high clinical standards. 

• Sustainable Community Ownership: Lasting impact requires strong community participation and institutional support. Community-based action groups help build local ownership, promote awareness, and encourage timely care-seeking behaviour. At the same time, collaboration with government health programmes and public health departments strengthens referrals, resource convergence, and service delivery, ensuring that quality eye care remains accessible and sustainable for the communities the hospital serves. 

Looking Ahead 

The inauguration of Chaitanyam Eye Care Institute is not the culmination of a project, it is the beginning of a long-term partnership to strengthen community eye health across rural Maharashtra. 

Together with Ekam Foundation, Sweekriti Sociocare Foundation, L.V. Prasad Eye Institute and local stakeholders, Operation Eyesight looks forward to supporting the implementation of the  Community Eye Health models, creating a sustainable system that reaches underserved communities, prevents avoidable blindness and restores vision for thousands of people every year. 

Because lasting impact is achieved not simply by building hospitals, but by building systems that ensure every individual has the opportunity to see a brighter future. 

The post Chaitanyam Eye Care Institute Opens in Rural Maharashtra  appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

In the remote hills of Arunachal Pradesh, losing sight has often meant losing much more than vision. 
 
For many older adults, blurred vision gradually becomes darkness. Reading prayers becomes impossible. Walking independently becomes difficult. Farming, weaving, cooking, and caring for grandchildren become daily struggles. Families quietly adapt, believing blindness is simply a part of growing old. 
 
But blindness caused by cataract is not inevitable. It is treatable. 
 
The challenge is ensuring that every person who needs care is identified, reaches treatment in time, and receives the support to regain their sight. 
 
That challenge has now been met in Miao Block of Changlang District, Arunachal Pradesh, officially declared Cataract Blindness Backlog-Free (CBBF) in June 2026. For Operation Eyesight, this achievement proves that when communities, governments and technical partners work together, eliminating avoidable blindness becomes an achievable reality. 

The Real Challenge Was Never Just Cataract 

Cataract remains one of the leading causes of avoidable blindness worldwide. While surgery is highly effective, thousands continue to live with unnecessary blindness because services fail to reach them in time. 
 
Distance, lack of awareness, fear of surgery, weak referral systems, financial hardship and difficult terrain often prevent people from receiving timely care. The real challenge is ensuring that no one who needs surgery is left behind. 

A Different Way of Thinking About Eye Care 

Operation Eyesight’s Integrated People-Centred Eye Care (IPEC) model strengthens primary healthcare rather than creating parallel systems. It integrates community awareness, household screening, referral pathways, diagnosis, surgery, follow-up and long-term surveillance into one connected continuum of care. 

A Four-Year Journey Built on Partnership 

Beginning in 2021, Operation Eyesight partnered with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh to strengthen existing government eye care services. Infrastructure, referral systems, frontline worker capacity and community awareness were all strengthened to make quality eye care accessible closer to home. 

Finding Every Person Who Needed Care 

Teams travelled village by village and house by house. Behind every statistic was a conversation with a family, counselling for an elderly patient, or support for someone who believed blindness was an unavoidable part of ageing. 

Achievements included:  
• 76 villages covered 
• 5,600+ households visited 
• Nearly 26,000 people enumerated 
• More than 26,700 people screened 
• 283 cataract patients identified. 

The Final Mile Was the Most Important 

Declaring a block Cataract Blindness Backlog-Free requires far more than performing surgeries. Every identified patient must be treated, medically certified if surgery is not possible, or documented after informed refusal. Households are revisited, outcomes verified and records validated before declaration. 

Strengthening Systems That Will Last 

Operation Eyesight supported health system strengthening through capacity building, referral systems, operating theatre support, community mobilisation, household validation and documentation. The goal was to leave behind stronger government systems capable of sustaining quality eye care. 

Why This Milestone Matters Beyond Miao 

For families, it means restored independence and renewed hope. For the Government, it demonstrates the power of integrating eye care into public health systems. For Operation Eyesight, it validates the IPEC approach and provides lessons that will strengthen programmes across India and beyond. 

A Milestone That Inspires the Journey Ahead 

While Miao’s declaration marks a historic milestone, it is by no means the end of the journey. Instead, it serves as a powerful demonstration of what is possible when governments, communities, and technical partners work together with a shared vision. 

Encouraged by the success in Miao, the Government of Arunachal Pradesh and Operation Eyesight are continuing to strengthen Integrated People-Centred Eye Care across other districts of the state. By building the capacity of primary healthcare facilities, strengthening referral pathways, supporting Vision Points, training frontline health workers, and empowering communities through awareness and early detection, the programme is laying the foundation for more blocks to achieve Cataract Blindness Backlog-Free status in the coming years. 

A similar transformation is also underway in Madhya Pradesh, where Operation Eyesight is working closely with the state health system to integrate eye care into primary healthcare through its Integrated People-Centred Eye Care (IPEC) model. Across multiple districts, the programme is strengthening primary health facilities, expanding community-based screening, improving referral systems, building the capacity of healthcare providers, and ensuring that people receive timely diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care. 

Rather than focusing solely on increasing the number of surgeries, these programmes are creating resilient eye health systems capable of continuously identifying, treating, and preventing avoidable blindness within communities. This shift from episodic interventions to sustainable systems strengthening is central to Operation Eyesight’s long-term vision. 

Miao has shown that eliminating avoidable blindness is not the result of a single intervention; it is the outcome of sustained partnerships, empowered communities, and resilient public health systems. As this approach continues to expand across Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and beyond, Operation Eyesight remains committed to working alongside governments and communities to ensure that quality eye care reaches everyone, everywhere. 

Because restoring sight changes one life. 

Building stronger health systems changes the future of entire generations.

The post Miao Block Declared Cataract Blindness Backlog-Free appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

Once cheerful and independent, she became totally dependent on her family. Financial struggles and fear of surgery kept her from seeking treatment. She felt isolated, helpless and like a burden to her loved ones.

One day, an Operation Eyesight-trained community health volunteer named Daiboki visited Debeswari’s home. Together, they worked through her eyesight issues and her fears. Later, a team from our partner, Chandraprabha Eye Hospital, visited Debeswari and explained cataract surgery. Reassured, she accepted treatment and was transported to hospital that very day.

Now, Debeswari again walks independently to her nearby village – a freedom she hadn’t enjoyed in years. In having her vision restored, she has also recovered her dignity and joy.

Did you know?

Globally, 100 million people have cataracts, the leading cause of blindness. In India, cataract causes 66 per cent of blindness, 81 per cent of severe vision loss, 70 per cent of moderate vision loss and 24 per cent of mild vision loss according to the IAPB Vision Atlas. Cataract surgery is one of the most cost-effective treatments at approximately INR 4,712.

Learn how you can support cataract surgeries here.

With files from Senior Programme Manager Tapobrat Bhuyan.

The post Cataract surgery counselling helps senior regain independence appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

His hope returned when a community health worker visited his home. Sriramappa took part in eye screening and was diagnosed with cataracts. Referred to our partner, Netradeep Eye Hospital (Globe Eye Foundation), Sririmappa accessed sight-restoring surgery free of charge.

Sriramappa expressed his gratitude to our donors. He is now enjoying life’s simple pleasures, especially roaming the forest with his animals, which helps to support his family.

Did you know?

There is a strong correlation between vision loss and age. People who are 50 years of age and older experience 73 per cent of all vision loss according to the IAPB Vision Atlas (2025). This puts people at risk of poverty, dependence and reduced health and well-being. At times, beliefs that vision loss is inevitable or that older people are not worthy of treatment can be barriers to overcome

Fortunately, 90 per cent of all vision loss is avoidable. This means it can be prevented or treated. Of all the treatments, cataract surgery is one of the most cost-effective solutions.

Learn more about how you can support sight-saving work here.

The post Community outreach leads to sight-saving cataract surgery appeared first on Operation Eyesight.