As many as 103 students from different colleges submitted willingness letters to donate their eyes after death at an eye donation awareness camp organised by the Sakshyam, Odisha here on Wednesday.
“While the number of visually-impaired people is increasing graduallly in the State, people are not showing willingness to donate eyes. There is also no special system for the purpose. While a private hospital is managing such affairs, youth masses seem unaware of it,” lamented organisers.
They informed that while India needs 25 lakh eyes, only 25,000 have been collected so far. A small country like Sri lanka is far ahead of India in collection of eyes and, even, it is exporting eyes to other countries.
The camp held at the India Scouts and Guides was preside over by Sakshyam joint secretary Prakash Rath. Sakshyam Inda organistion minister Dr Sukumar, Deepak Bhai, Saroj Sahoo, human rights activist Indira Das, Rajya Nagarika Samaj’s joint convenor Debashis Mishra and Biju Senapati and National Youth Project’s Hara Prasad and Bikash Bhai were present.
Efforts would be taken to establish an eye bank and a related helpdesk in the State, they said.