The Tamilnadu Blindness Control Society is planning to set up District Blindness Societies in each of the districts of Tamilnadu, as part of its efforts to promote eye donation.

According to Prof.Dr.R.Pandurangan, Deputy Director of the Tamilnadu Blindness Control Society, 25 District Blindness Societies will soon come up in the district headquarters of the state.

Each society will have a two-member team of 'Grief Counselors' to counsel people affected with blindness, and to campaign among the general public for voluntary eye donation. The Counselors would be paid Rs.500 each for their service, said Dr.Pandurangan.

He said at present India needs annually about 75,000 to one lakh pairs of eyes for needy patients, who could restore their vision with eye replacement. However, the nationwide availability is less than 25, 000 pairs.

The Tamilnadu government has taken up many awareness campaigns on eye donation in association with various NGOs in the state like the Lions Eye Bank Trust and Research Foundation (LEBT), and with the Regional Institute of Opthalmology at Egmore in Chennai, said the official.

He said the state Government has come forward with a policy statement on blindness control, which aims to launch a large scale campaign soon.