The state government has successfully conducted cataract operations of 7868 people free-of-cost under Centre’s National Programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB) in the first quarter of the financial year 2011-12 till June 30. After operation, lens transplantation was done gratis in the eyes of 7566 patients while 302 received spectacles.
In the previous fiscal, the government had conducted cataract operations of 102660 people (i.e. 102 percent of the given target) out of which lens transplantation was done in the eyes of 99437 patients while 3223 received spectacles.
The officials of Health and Family Welfare Minister Amar Agrawal informed that the department aims to conduct 1.10 lakh cataract operations in the current fiscal. The operations are being done in the government as well as private hospitals, he said. He further informed that the department had conducted over 6.50 lakh cataract operations since 2004-05.
Notably, The NPCB was launched in the year 1976 as a 100 percent Centrally-sponsored scheme with the goal to reduce the prevalence of blindness to 0.3 percent by 2020. The NPCB also conducted rapid survey on avoidable blindness during 2006-07 and found reduction in the prevalence rate of blindness from 1.1 percent (2001-02) to 1 percent (2006-07).
The officials of the Health department informed that the NPCB aimed to reduce the backlog of blindness through identification and treatment of the blind, to develop comprehensive eye care facilities in every district, to develop human resources for providing eye care services, to improve quality of service delivery, to secure participation of voluntary organisations as well as private practitioners in eye care.
According to information, there are 193 ophthalmologists in the state of which 63 are in government service. The officials informed that all the district hospitals and nine community health centres of the state provide eye operation facility. Besides, the eye camps are being organised at development block level every month to conduct free-of-cost cataract operations, they said.
The districts where cataract operations have been done from April-June 2011 – North Bastar (Kanker) – 48, Bastar (Jagdalpur) – 367, Korba – 54, Janjgir-Champa – 287, Bilaspur – 1314, Raigarh – 214, Kabeerdham (Kawardha) – 35, Durg – 2055, Dhamtari – 454, Mahasamund – 26, Rajnandgaon – 964, Raipur – 1818, Koria – 47, Jashpur – 108 and Sarguja – 125.
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