Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has said he would request the HRD Ministry to include passages and essays in school textbooks to encourage students to develop a positive attitude towards organ donation, particularly eye donation.
Speaking at an event yesterday, Vardhan said it was important that youngsters got exposed to the enormity of the problem of blindness in India and their responsibility to contribute to its end.
"We teach the young the life stories of great savants and leaders with the hope that the new generation will imbibe their qualities. It is also necessary to instill in them their responsibility towards the blind population of India which could benefit if cornea donation becomes part of the nation's culture," Vardhan said.
Stating that the corneal blind population of India was the largest in the world, he said, "At a rough estimate, the country needs one lakh corneas every year but only about 17,000 are procured.
"Of these only about 50 percent are utilised," he said.
According to WHO, there are 45 million blind persons in the world, of whom 12 million are in India. Corneal blindness accounts for 1 percent of the total blind population of the country. WHO also estimates that the blind population may double by 2020 owing to the rise in population and longevity.
"We need more eye banks. But that is not enough. There should be synergistic interaction among professional health services and community engagement," Vardhan said.
Increasing public awareness, promoting eye donation, implementing quality standards and organising a network of trained professionals for procurement, preservation and distribution of tissues are vital, he added.
