NEW DELHI, Mar 13: Rajya Sabha Congress member Mukul Balkrishna Wasnik on Friday highlighted the problems being faced by people suffering from corneal blindness, saying India requires an estimated 2 lakh eye donations annually to clear the current backlog and treat new cases.
The senior Congress member also asked the government for universal coverage for children requiring cochlear implants or advanced hearing aids.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the House, Wasnik said of the total blind population in India, 1.2-1.5 million suffer specifically from corneal blindness, which is the only type reversible through eye donation.
“Every year, roughly 25,000 to 30,000 new cases of corneal blindness are added. The current annual eye collection in India is approximately 25,000 to 30,000. However, not all eyes donated are suitable for transplantation. Approximately only 60 to 70 per cent are used for surgery,” he said.
The Congress MP emphasised that India requires an estimated 2 lakh eye donations annually to effectively clear the current backlog and address new cases.
He further said while India has the largest number of eye banks globally, collection and utilisation remain concentrated in few high performing centres.
The primary hurdles in reaching donation targets include, lack of awareness, family objection, and socio-cultural myths.
“I urge the government to accord high priority in resolving these hurdles,” he said.
Wasnik further said an estimated 10,00,000 children require cochlear implant surgery or advanced hearing aids, and every year, about 35,000 new cases are identified.
Despite the high demand, he said the current provision through government schemes is limited, creating a significant gap between the annual requirement and the number of surgeries actually performed.
While the government scheme currently provides a subsidy of up to Rs 7 lakh for children, the actual average out of pocket expenditure for surgery, the device, immediate post-operative care, and speech therapy often far exceeds the amount, he said.
He also recalled that the government, while replying to his unstarred question dated March 11, 2026, had stated that under the Assistance to Persons with Disabilities for Purchase/Fitting of Aids/Appliances (ADIP) Scheme, the number of beneficiaries covered in the last five years was 3,809, and the amount spent was about Rs 164 crore.
He said lakhs of children have been left out of the benefit of ADIP scheme.
“I urge the government to provide for a scheme that will have universal coverage, provide financial assistance that will reflect the current market cost and provide dedicated funding for long-term maintenance and accelerate indigenous development of the implant system to reduce import dependency,” Wasnik said. (PTI)
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