According to the World Health Organisation, India has a blind population of 63 million. A substantial number lose their vision late in life and the consequent trauma is something that, leave aside families, even the medical fraternity is not equipped to address. That’s our focus on Story of the Week.

Until 2017, life was going as expected for Praveen Shankhdhar . An art director in an advertising agency, Praveen was in his 30s, married with a child. Then he started losing his vision due to glaucoma.

“I started treatment and my family rallied around me at first but after some time, they all left me”, says Praveen. “It was a terrible time as I struggled on many fronts. The treatment exhausted my savings and was coping with drastic physical changes and battling depression”.

Luckily for Praveen his friends stood by him and organised his treatment at a Chennai eye centre. “I landed there all alone and found my way to the facility where I stayed for 10 months. I had to learn how to fend for myself”.

Praveen’s is not a rare instance. Instances of late blindness, say experts, are rising in India with a growing number of people seeking help. This prompted well-known non-profit Score Foundation to organise a roundtable conference to raise awareness about the challenges they faced.
Source: https://newzhook.com/story/22711