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About 60 Indian sisters from various congregations have pledged to donate their eyes upon their death. The decision was reached during a program organized on 29 Feb. by the Claretian Fathers at the Indian Institute of Spirituality in Bangalore.  The event was part of the initiative called "The Vision Project", which aims to raise awareness about vision problems in a country that is home to a third of blind people worldwide.   This is why the religious are committed not only to donate their cornea, but also to become "Ambassadors of vision" in the places where they live and work. 

Fr George Kannanthanam, the organizer, explained that it is a "programme to make citizens aware of the problem and motivate the sisters to work for this cause.  During the event, Fr. George told the sisters  not to “burn or bury” their eyes.  “They could be the eyes for someone else. After your death, leave them to someone who has never seen the world.”  He pointed to Jesus’ special love for the blind, saying there are 6 miracles of healing recorded in the Gospels. 

Worldwide, about 39 million people have poor vision and 15 million of them live in India. Their living conditions are really "sad because of the physical, social, psychological and economic challenges that they face" because of the disease. The majority of disabled people cannot survive.  Eye donation is not widespread in India. Every year 140 thousand people need a cornea transplant, but the number of donors does not exceed 40 thousand.  This means that 100 thousand patients are put on waiting lists.

According to Fr. George, the work of the sisters in society as "Ambassadors of Vision" can be crucial in countering the traditional distrust of cornea donation.  If "all religious India donated their eyes - concluded Fr. George - and promised to donate in favor of the suffering blind, the demand for corneal transplants" could be met. ‎  (Source: AsiaNews)

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