Healthcare startup Pristyn Care and Impact Guru Foundation have joined hands to raise funds through crowdsourcing to sponsor cataract surgery for the underprivileged class under the "Save the Sight" campaign, a joint statement said on Monday.
As part of the initiative, IGF will raise funds on the crowdfunding platform ImpactGuru web platform and the surgeries will be performed by Pristyn Care's expert ophthalmologists.
'Save the Sight' is an endeavour to restore the sight of over 2 million people who are awaiting cataract surgery but cannot afford it. "Out of the 3.8 million Indians contract cataract annually, 80 per cent suffer from permanent blindness. Our initiative, in partnership with Pristyn Care, is a step towards helping people in the country to unblur their eyesight and enjoy the beauty around them.
"With cataract being one of the necessary surgeries, we aim to provide our support to maximum individuals," Impact Guru Foundation CEO Sundeep Talwar said.
According to the joint statement, India is home to the largest blind population in the world with approximately 8 million blind people.
Cataract is considered a significant contributor to this life-crippling ocular condition, with estimates attributing 50 to 80 per cent of bilateral blindness cases in India to cataract, the statement said.
Cataract is also believed to be the most significant cause of avoidable blindness. As per recent statistics from the National Center of Biotechnology and Information (NCBI), over 3.8 million Indians annually contract cataract.
Pritsyn Care co-founder Harsimarbir Singh said that the treatment gap in India is huge - in some rural areas, there is often just one doctor per 30,000 people.
"With our strong presence across Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, we aim to improve accessibility and better quality care under our healthcare for Bharat mission. With the 'Save the Sight' initiative in collaboration with Impact Guru Foundation, we aim to provide surgical care to the eligible beneficiaries from under-served communities, who are suffering from cataract," Singh said.
The Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global-backed healthcare startup has a presence in 40 cities across India and has empanelled a network of over 800 hospitals and more than 200 clinics, which it operates across the country.
Anyone with a BPL card or belonging to a household with less than Rs 20,000 per month income can register for the programme.
The applicant patients must not have any health insurance to register for the 'Save the Sight' programme.
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