Kashmir Impulse Desk
Srinagar, Sep 30
The Indian Army has conducted 364 eye surgeries in Srinagar and Tangdhar as part of its Operation Drishti healthcare initiative, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said on Wednesday, describing the programme as an effort to improve access to medical services in remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 11th Mega Eye Surgery Camp in Srinagar, Sinha thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh for their support and commended the Army’s medical personnel, led by Brigadier Sanjay Kumar Mishra.
The Srinagar camp accounted for 144 surgeries, while 220 patients underwent procedures over two days at Tangdhar in Kupwara district, where the Army established an underground operating theatre.
Sinha said the Tangdhar camp was the first mega eye surgery camp held in the border area, where difficult terrain and security challenges had complicated access to healthcare.
He said modern surgical equipment had been airlifted to the area, enabling doctors to provide advanced eye treatment to patients from Khawarpora, Tangdhar, Bagbella and nearby villages.
The Lieutenant Governor said the surgeries had helped restore vision and improve the quality of life of beneficiaries, while demonstrating the possibility of delivering specialised medical services in remote locations.
At the national level, more than 150,000 people have undergone eye examinations and more than 3,500 surgeries have been performed across 10 cities under Operation Drishti, Sinha said.
He said the initiative had strengthened ties between the Army and local communities, adding that the armed forces played a role in providing assistance to civilians alongside their defence responsibilities.
Sinha praised the doctors, support staff, Air Force pilots and soldiers involved in transporting equipment, setting up operating facilities and conducting surgeries in challenging conditions.
He said the Srinagar camp would not be the end of the programme and expressed confidence that Operation Drishti would expand to more villages and towns to improve access to healthcare.
During the ceremony, Sinha felicitated doctors and medical staff from the defence forces and distributed post-operative kits to beneficiaries.
Lieutenant General Balbir Singh, General Officer Commanding of the Chinar Corps, Brigadier Mishra, Brigadier B V Rao, Commandant of 92 Base Hospital, and other defence officials attended the event.
Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Anshul Garg, Srinagar Senior Superintendent of Police G V Sundeep Chakravarthy and Deputy Commissioner Akshay Labroo were also present.
