Lok Sabha Question No. 2883 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-12-28
Subject: Blindness
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: GOPAL CHINAYYA SHETTY, VISHNU DAYAL RAM, HARISH DWIVEDI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2883 TO BE ANSWERED ON 28 TH DECEMBER, 2018

## BLINDNESS

## 2883. SHRI GOPAL SHETTY: SHRI VISHNU DAYAL RAM: SHRI HARISH CHANDRA ALIAS HARISH DWIVEDI:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) whether India is the worst affected country in the world by blindness and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;

(b) the estimated number of blind people in the country particularly in rural areas, State/UT -wise;

(c) the financial assistance provided so far to tackle the problem of blindness during the last three years, State/UT - wise;

(d) whether the Government proposes t o organize free eye check up in schools and slums to detect eye disease at an early stage and create awareness among people about eye donation and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the other steps taken or proposed to be taken to check the increasing cases of blindness in the country?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

(SMT. ANUPRIYA PATEL )

(a): As per the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Data on Visual Impairments 2010, China accounts for 20.9% and India 20.5% of the total blindness in the classified 6 WHO regions in the world.

As per the Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB) conducted under the National  Programme  for  Control  of  Blindness  &  Visual  Impairment  (NPCB&VI)  in  the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare during the year 2006 - 07, the prevalence of blindness in India was found to be 1% (as per the earlier definition of blindness of visual acuit

The number of blind persons in India also appears high due to large population increase  in  ageing  population  and  semi  tropical  location  of  the  country,  lack  of awareness, orthodox beliefs and economic constraints etc. The causes of blindness in are as under:

- Cataract (62.6%)
- Refractive Error (19.7%)
- Glaucoma (5.80%)
- Corneal Blindness (0.9%)
- Posterior Segment Disorder (4.7%)
- Posterior Capsular Opacification (0.9%)
- Surgical Complication (1.2%)
- Others (4.1%)

(b) : As  per  the  estimates  of  detailed  Blindness  Survey  conducted  in  2001 - 02,  the State/UT - wise  number  of blindpersons  in  the  country  including  rural    areas  is  given A nnexure- I.

These figures have been calculated as per definition of blindness visual acuity in better eye, which was followed by NPCB&VI at the time of 2001 - 02 survey ,w here as the definition of blindness by WHO is visual acuity <3/60. Since May, 2017, the WHO definit of blindness has also been adopted by India under NPCB&VI, which would considerably bring down the number of blind persons in the country.

(c) : The  funds  app roved  under  the  State  Programme  Implementation  Plan  (SPIP)  and spent  during  each  of  the  last  three  years  under  this  programme,  State/UT - wise  is  at Annexure - II.

(d) : School Eye Screening is an ongoing activity under NPCB&VI to identify childre suffering  f rom  refractive  errors.  The  children  found  with  refractive  errors  are  pro corrective  spectacles  free  of  cost  by  the  District  Health  Society  concerned  und Programme.

Further,  comprehensive  eye  screening  camps  are  conducted  for  general  populatio including  slums  at  district  level  to  identify  patients  suffering  from  cataract  and aliments. The patients identified suffering from cataract and other eye ailments are appropriate curative services/eye surgery free of cost at District Ho spital and identified NGO Eye Hospital under NPCB&VI.

Information, Education and Communication (IEC) is also an on - g ing activity under NPCB&VI  to  create  awareness  about  eye  health  including  promotion  of  eye  donation  t restore vision of corneal blind in the country. A nation - wide campaign is organized during the  annual  event - Eye  Donation  Fortnight  from  25 th August  to  8 th September  each  year  to promote eye donation.

(e): The following steps have been  taken under NPCB& VI to check the rising number of cases of blindness in the country:

- Decentralized implementation of the scheme through State/District Health Societie
- Reduction  in  the  backlog  of  blind  persons  by  active  screening  and  transport operable  cases  to  fixed eye- care  facilities  at  Government  and  identified  NGO  eye hospitals for operation/treatment;
- Besides  Cataract,  provision  for  treatment/management  of  other  eye  diseases  l Diabetic  Retinopathy,  Glaucoma,  Corneal  Blindness,  Retinal  Diseases,  Childhoo Blin dness including Retinopathy of Prematurity etc.;
- Involvement of private practitioners in eye care services;
- Screening  of  children  for  identification  and  treatment  of  refractive  error distribution of free spectacles to those suffering from refractive errors under School Eye Screening Programme;
- Collection  of  donated  eyes  for  corneal  transplantation  and  strengthening  of banking services;
- In- service  training  to  Eye  Surgeons  in  various  fields  of  ophthalmology  f development of skills;
- Strengthening  o f  eye - care  infrastructure  at  various  levels  to  improve  quantity  a quality of eye -care services;
- Promoting preventive Eye care and creating awareness through IEC activities;
- Regular monitoring and evaluation for effective implementation of the programme.

ANNEXURE-I Estimated Blind/Visually Impaired Persons in India

| S.No.   | State/UTs            |   (visual acuity |
|---------|----------------------|------------------|
| 1       | ANDAMAN & NICOBAR    |             3919 |
| 2       | ANDHRA PRADESH       |          1075331 |
| 3       | ARUNACHAL PRADESH    |            24877 |
| 4       | ASSAM                |           812471 |
| 5       | BIHAR                |           646455 |
| 6       | CHANDIGARH           |             9099 |
| 7       | CHHATTISGARH         |           334815 |
| 8       | DADRA & NAGAR HAVELI |             2359 |
| 9       | DAMAN & DIU          |             1691 |
| 10      | DELHI                |           155748 |
| 11      | GOA                  |            20429 |
| 12      | GUJARAT              |           541388 |
| 13      | HARYANA              |           398468 |
| 14      | HIMACHAL PRADESH     |            42541 |
| 15      | JAMMU & KASHMIR      |           162126 |
| 16      | JHARKHAND            |           379423 |
| 17      | KARNATAKA            |           938664 |
| 18      | KERALA               |           178296 |
| 19      | LAKSHADWEEP          |              667 |
| 20      | MADHYA PRADESH       |           700467 |
| 21      | MAHARASHTRA          |           919146 |
| 22      | MANIPUR              |            32963 |
| 23      | MEGHALAYA            |            17065 |
| 24      | MIZORAM              |             6950 |
| 25      | NAGALAND             |            20881 |
| 26      | ODISHA               |           513897 |
| 27      | PUDUCHERRY           |             7596 |
| 28      | PUNJAB               |           245322 |
| 29      | RAJASTHAN            |           875333 |
| 30      | SIKKIM               |             3513 |
| 31      | TAMIL NADU           |           484465 |
| 32      | TRIPURA              |            24572 |
| 33      | UTTAR PRADESH        |          1560897 |
| 34      | UTTARAKHAND          |            47486 |
| 35      | WEST BENGAL          |           954632 |
|         | TOTAL                |         12143952 |

Source: Blindness survey 2001-02.

## Details of SPIP Approval Vs Expenditure under National Programme for Control of Blindness for the F.Y. 2015 - 16 to 2017 - 18

(Rs. in lakhs)

| S. No.      | Name of the States/UTs    | 2015-16        | 2015-16     | 2016-17        | 2016-17     | 2017-18        | 2017-18     |
|-------------|---------------------------|----------------|-------------|----------------|-------------|----------------|-------------|
| S. No.      | Name of the States/UTs    | SPIP Approvals | Expenditure | SPIP Approvals | Expenditure | SPIP Approvals | Expenditure |
| A.          | High Focus States         |                |             |                |             |                |             |
| 1           | Bihar                     | 1043.95        | 824.77      | 1379.16        | 618.16      | 1857.90        | 1182.84     |
| 2           | Chattisgarh               | 458.00         | 307.38      | 761.20         | 434.18      | 961.73         | 572.34      |
| 3           | Himachal Pradesh          | 100.00         | 151.92      | 127.00         | 90.15       | 243.51         | 31.35       |
| 4           | Jammu & Kashmir           | 400.00         | 146.03      | 534.24         | 67.72       | 413.59         | 274.36      |
| 5           | Jharkhand                 | 466.00         | 254.00      | 685.77         | 538.78      | 693.90         | 572.19      |
| 6           | Madhya Pradesh            | 1000.00        | 1672.04     | 1834.13        | 2420.69     | 2657.60        | 2320.32     |
| 7           | Orissa                    | 900.00         | 874.04      | 1384.09        | 846.88      | 1879.11        | 709.98      |
| 8           | Rajasthan                 | 904.57         | 1372.00     | 1708.13        | 1458.38     | 1809.38        | 1518.22     |
| 9           | Uttar Pradesh             | 2200.00        | 1582.45     | 2481.94        | 1811.67     | 5065.15        | 2394.57     |
| 10          | Uttarakhand               | 274.00         | 177.65      | 213.44         | 167.93      | 289.69         | 289.26      |
|             | Sub Total                 | 7746.52        | 7362.28     | 11109.10       | 8454.54     | 15871.56       | 9865.42     |
| B.          | NE States                 |                |             |                |             |                |             |
| 11          | Arunachal Pradesh         | 251.25         | 0.00        | 335.38         | 206.13      | 391.68         | 142.86      |
| 12          | Assam                     | 1355.25        | 1073.30     | 1401.56        | 621.16      | 1598.67        | 808.34      |
| 13          | Manipur                   | 168.30         | 36.12       | 418.46         | 24.54       | 844.60         | 4.86        |
| 14          | Meghalaya                 | 190.50         | 45.69       | 203.02         | 87.70       | 101.64         | 48.85       |
| 15          | Mizoram                   | 297.00         | 128.78      | 214.31         | 113.36      | 368.79         | 156.56      |
| 16          | Nagaland                  | 0.00           | 0.00        | 324.11         | 90.96       | 309.57         | 130.10      |
| 17          | Sikkim                    | 198.21         | 114.06      | 79.96          | 82.79       | 69.15          | 52.65       |
| 18          | Tripura                   | 300.00         | 220.18      | 0.00           | 178.35      | 332.64         | 80.33       |
|             | Sub Total                 | 2760.51        | 1618.12     | 2976.80        | 1404.99     | 4016.74        | 1424.56     |
| C.          | Non -High Focus States    |                |             |                |             |                |             |
| 19          | Andhra Pradesh            | 539.00         | 1300.45     | 773.39         | 1140.19     | 1950.14        | 993.40      |
| 20          | Goa                       | 145.00         | 75.54       | 142.74         | 58.91       | 73.82          | 33.41       |
| 21          | Gujarat                   | 569.00         | 2247.89     | 2238.79        | 2277.84     | 2302.19        | 2209.34     |
| 22          | Haryana                   | 234.00         | 241.79      | 365.12         | 219.48      | 208.99         | 85.28       |
| 23          | Karnataka                 | 1073.89        | 981.17      | 1959.73        | 1398.44     | 3232.88        | 2013.95     |
| 24          | Kerala                    | 400.50         | 434.61      | 554.07         | 419.21      | 593.81         | 670.52      |
| 25          | Maharashtra               | 1840.41        | 1168.12     | 2160.83        | 1417.35     | 2978.67        | 1197.01     |
| 26          | Punjab                    | 323.78         | 749.89      | 700.66         | 490.79      | 807.29         | 202.55      |
| 27          | Tamil Nadu                | 991.32         | 1606.12     | 2013.90        | 2411.41     | 2350.04        | 2691.77     |
| 28          | Telangana                 | 1520.00        | 415.04      | 770.01         | 575.25      | 1447.45        | 1227.73     |
| 29          | West Bengal               | 950.00         | 697.20      | 1724.69        | 1056.59     | 2123.65        | 1627.78     |
|             | Sub Total                 | 8586.90        | 9917.82     | 13403.93       | 11465.47    | 18068.93       | 12952.74    |
| D.          | Small States/UTs          |                |             |                |             |                |             |
| 30          | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 10.00          | 11.26       | 61.63          | 15.82       | 71.68          | 4.47        |
| 31          | Chandigarh                | 68.13          | 53.29       | 74.09          | 52.12       | 65.10          | 19.27       |
| 32          | Dadra & Nagar Haveli      | 18.96          | 24.46       | 56.23          | 33.12       | 34.58          | 12.73       |
| 33          | Daman & Diu               | 0.00           | 11.15       | 23.76          | 2.34        | 16.97          | 0.45        |
| 34          | Delhi                     | 199.50         | 143.19      | 261.10         | 90.91       | 569.54         | 105.16      |
| 35          | Lakshdweep                | 10.26          | 0.00        | 16.07          | 0.00        | 22.43          | 7.71        |
| 36          | Puducherry                | 75.00          | 26.83       | 97.18          | 90.76       | 80.75          | 50.20       |
|             | Sub Total                 | 381.85         | 270.17      | 590.06         | 285.08      | 861.05         | 199.99      |
| Grand Total | Grand Total               | 19475.78       | 19168.39    | 28079.89       | 21610.07    | 38818.28       | 24442.71    |

## Note:

1. SPIP stands for State Program Implementation Plan.
2. Expenditure includes expenditure against Central Rel ase, State share & unspent balances at the beginning of  the year.
3. The above figures are as per FMRs  reported by States / UTs.