Berhampur, Dec. 13: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik today inaugurated a secondary centre of L.V. Prasad Eye Institute at Ambapua here.
Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy
The centre, which was set up in partnership with the Savitri Waney Charitable Foundation and Mission for Vision, is the 15th secondary centre of the eye institute in the country and the third in the state.
The joint endeavour aims at providing high-quality, low-cost and self-sustaining permanent eye care infrastructure in underdeveloped areas of the state.
Naveen urged the eye care centre authorities to provide proper care to everyone and see that no one was neglected.
"The institute will facilitate the poor people of south Odisha ," he said.
Health minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak assured all help and co-operation to the institute.
The centre at Berhampur is equipped with sophisticated medical equipment and well-trained staff to deliver comprehensive eye care services on a sustainable basis, aiming to eliminate avoidable blindness in the region, said entrepreneur Arjun Waney, who founded the Savitri foundation.
"It is a great honour to be part of this initiative, to bring the high quality services of L.V. Prasad Eye Institute to those who cannot otherwise afford or access eye care services in Odisha," said Waney.
"These eye centres in Odisha will be a continuum of the institute's vision of providing good quality, permanent and affordable eye care for people in rural India. The Berhampur eye care facility will be a part of the institute's network and provide high quality comprehensive eye care services to all, irrespective of their socio-economic status," said founder and chairperson of the institute, Gullapalli N. Rao.
Vice-chairman of the institute Tara Prasad Das said: "The quality eye care brought to the door step of people of Ganjam and neighbouring area will further augment the institute's commitment to the state. It will augment similar effort in the districts of Sundargarh and Rayagada eye care facilities opened earlier this year."
Naveen also attended several events across the district during his daylong visit today. #The chief minister inaugurated a fire station at Rambha, a block-level model school at Sorada as well as a NAC market complex at Sorada.
He also laid the foundation stone of the Mukhyamantri Sadak Yojana project at Rambha.
