2nd Sep 2025, Bangalore – A staggering 1.3 million people in India are affected by bilateral corneal blindness. Another 10.6 million suffer from unilateral corneal blindness with vision less than 6/60. Every year, about 30,000–50,000 new cases are added. Yet, the reality is that corneal tissue collection in India is only around 50,000–60,000 annually. The gap between the number of people suffering from corneal blindness and the number of eye donors seems insurmountable.
Some of the reasons for this deficit in eye donors include lack of awareness, misinformation, misconceptions, fears of disfigurement, and cultural or religious beliefs. Dr. K. Bhujang Shetty, Founding Chairman and visionary behind Narayana Nethralaya, was among the pioneers in Karnataka to notice this gap between supply and demand for eye donation. During his training years, he observed that most eye donors were from Sri Lanka, owing to the Buddhist belief that “Dana,” or the act of selfless giving, would help them reincarnate into a better life.
This realisation led Dr. Bhujang Shetty to champion the cause of eye donation in Karnataka. He convinced and involved Dr. Rajkumar, the superstar and matinee idol, to support this noble cause, and worked diligently to establish the Dr. Rajkumar Eye Bank in 1994. Today, it stands as one of Karnataka’s largest and most successful eye banks, maintaining international standards in tissue banking. Dr. Shetty’s persistent efforts to popularise eye donation inspired many film stars, including Yash, Shivarajkumar and Arjun Sarja to pledge their eyes. Dr. Rajkumar, Mrs. Parvathamma Rajkumar and Puneet Rajkumar’s eyes were donated by the family after their demise, as per their wishes. Puneet Rajkumar’s eye donation inspired thousands of his fans to follow the footsteps of their idol by pledging their eyes.
The Narayana Nethralaya Eye Foundation currently operates two of the most productive eye banks: the Dr. Rajkumar Eye Bank and the Shankar Anand Singh Eye Bank, established at Narayana Health City, Bangalore, in 2008. The organisation encourages eye donation by felicitating the staff and members of individual collection centres for their efforts and contribution in making this process easy and accessible to all.
Eye Donation Fortnight is observed in India every year between August 25th and September 8th to create and spread awareness among people. The theme of this year’s eye donation fortnight is “Everyday Heroes,” celebrating the fact that almost anyone can donate their eyes irrespective of age, gender, caste or creed. Even those who are suffering from diseases like diabetes, hypertension or who wear glasses or have undergone a cataract surgery can also donate. All it takes is one missed call (to 8884018800) to pledge your eyes and become a hero who can make a difference.
Every year during the eye donation fortnight, the Dr. Rajkumar Eye Bank felicitates the efforts of eye collection centres and volunteers, acknowledging their selfless contributions to the cause of eye donation. As part of this, the Harish Nanjappa Award and the Dr. Bhujang Shetty Award are presented to the best-performing centres, volunteers, and motivators. The Harish Nanjappa Award is named after Harish Nanjappa, who, despite being fatally injured in a tragic accident, selflessly chose to donate his eyes. People from all walks of life—Police Inspectors, doctors from the Indian Medical Association, and even eminent personalities like legendary actress Dr. B. Saroja Devi, renowned writer Kamala Hampana, and several politicians—have contributed to this noble cause by pledging or donating their eyes. Even Dr. Bhujang Shetty’s own eyes were donated by his family, fulfilling his wish to bring light into people’s lives. Yet, despite such inspiring acts, the glaring gap between the number of eye donors and the number of people waiting for a transplant continues to remain a challenge.
Narayana Nethralaya strives to create public awareness about this noble cause through its numerous initiatives. To commemorate the 40th Eye Donation Fortnight this year, Narayana Nethralaya is organising a Cyclothon event, Ride for Sight, on Sunday, 7th September 2025, at Narayana Nethralaya Whitefield Branch, next to Seetharamapalya Metro Station. The event will focus on educating and inspiring the public about this worthy cause while encouraging more people to pledge their eyes. The cyclothon also promotes fitness and physical activity for good health.
In addition, it is organising an online painting competition for children of all ages with various themes focussing on eye donation to promote awareness among the young citizens of the country. The details of this competition are available on their official website and social media channels.
Despite the efforts, and increased number of eye pledges year after year, all of them do not convert into donations due to factors like consent of family members after death, proximity of eye banks at the time of death and most importantly, the fact that families are in a state of grief or shock, to act immediately. This is where grief counsellors and medical staff of the hospitals play a role in guiding a family gently through the procedure of eye donation.
This Eye Donation Fortnight is a perfect opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others by pledging your eyes, while also participating in a community activities and awareness campaigns that promote this noble cause.
Gp Capt S K Mittal VSM
Chief Executive Officer
Narayana Nethralaya
