Lucknow: Health experts and policymakers called for urgent steps to bridge gaps in corneal donation and transplant, stressing that corneal blindness was one of the most preventable and reversible causes of visual impairment.The deliberations took place at a state-level programme jointly organised by the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation Uttar Pradesh (SOTTO-UP), department of hospital administration and department of ophthalmology, at the Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences. Additional chief secretary, health and family welfare, Amit Kumar Ghosh, said, “Our collective commitment today will shape a brighter and more visible tomorrow for UP. We must build stronger partnerships between govt institutions, NGOs and eye care centres to ensure that every donated cornea reached a recipient timely.”SGPGIMS medical superintendent and SOTTO-UP joint director, Dr R Harsvardhan, emphasised need for systemic reform. “Our vision for eye care goes beyond treatment. It is about building a decentralised, technology-driven system where no donated cornea goes unused. Strengthened coordination, public awareness and accountability are critical,” he said.SGPGIMS director Prof R K Dhiman and NOTTO director Dr Anil Kumar underscored need for seamless coordination—from donor identification and sensitive family counselling to timely retrieval and ethical allocation.
