Jolly Jacob and Febin Joy, had  tagged me  a few weeks ago, for passing on the “Donate your Eyes” message .  I had kept it aside then, because there was someone I wanted to write about , in that context;  someone I had come to know , in a professional capacity , a few years ago, but who has, for me, come to represent a shining example of  how one can conquer the odds meted out in life and still come out a WINNER!!.

       Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you, Anuradha Mohit, the present Director of the National Institute for the Visually Handicapped and also Special Rapporteur for Disabilities, in the National Commission for Human Rights .

        When I first met her, Ms. Mohit was holding the post of  Dy. Chief Commissioner for Disabilities. As part of her job, she was required to oversee that all Ministries and other Central Government Institutions were implementing the provisions included in the Persons With Disabilities Act, which was introduced in 1995. The Commission being quasi-judicial in nature, notices could be issued by them, seeking explanation about non-compliance or violation of the Act. The Ministry, where I was then working, had received one such notice, on the aspect of recruitment (3% of the jobs in all Central Government Institutions are reserved for persons with Disabilities), barrier free access etc. We had been slack about this and on receiving the notice , had quickly got into  remedial mode and conducted a Special Recruitment Drive. My boss and I were visiting her office to give her a compliance report and asking  for exemption  for certain  categories in certain departments,  where it was felt that operational safety may be jeopardized, if persons with physical disabilities were employed.

      We knocked and entered her room. She looked up at us, from her table at the end of the room , as we walked towards her and then asked us to take our seats. One immediately noticed her  poise and her very pleasant demeanour.  We handed over the compliance reports and the letter asking for exemption, explaining to her, our predicament with reference to the areas where we couldn’t comply. She  smiled patiently and explained  in turn, why our stand could not be fully appreciated and how we should be looking  for alternative areas where the recruitment could be done etc. While we talked, she was attending to phone calls, which one gathered from the conversation, were from different parts of the country. There was also a call related pertaining to some seminar abroad, which she was to attend.

     We had tea and then she asked us to wait, telling us that she would dictate a reply straightaway to our official communication. When her P.A came in, she handed over our letter to her and asked her to read it out. . It was then and only then that I realized (my boss had even then, not caught on) that she was completely blind!!

       One later learnt that Anuradha  was blind from the age of ten, after a very bad car accident. With a  very supportive family around her, she had not let this impairment come in her way and had completed her studies and worked her way to the position she was then holding.  Since then, she has been very, very actively involved within the country and abroad , in various capacities , addressing the issues relating to the physically handicapped. Presently she is holding the position of  Director , National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, in Dehradun. She is also Special Rapporteur for Disabilities in the National Human Rights Commission.

            Anuradha has often been asked how difficult it has been for her,  making the journey so far and she admits that it has been difficult indeed,  being blind and doubly difficult, being  a blind woman.

         Please do access the two links below. One is an interview  with Ms. Mohit in the Hindu and the other one is a report that appeared in the Deccan Herald.

http://www.thehindu.com/2006/06/03/stories/2006060305531100.htm

http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Oct202007/she2007101931514.asp    

         Udita (who is better known on iLand as ‘UC’) ran the following  post on her space urging people to donate their eyes. To spread the good word, the post is being tagged from one  iLander to another, spurring more and more people to get informed about eye-donation, and the ways/ means on how one could do it. The procedures are simple, and the post has an embedded link to a website lightaneye.org   that gives a list of all the hospitals in your area where the corneal operation could be done.     As I mentioned at the beginning of my post, I was tagged by Jolly Jacob and Febin Joy, to spread the message about donating eyes. I have pledged mine. I hope my family members respect my wishes.  From my side I tag  Dilip Krishnan, Moe M, Misty Bella, Dhaivat Rangray, Madhavan P.K, Rajesh Vora, Amit Goel and Prudent Indian (if they haven’t already been tagged before by someone elso)

        All those  who may also  wish to take this message forward, start from here.

Here’s what Udita says -

"What a Wonderful World"

-Louis Armstrong

“ I see trees of green, red roses too
 I see them bloom for me and you

And I think to myself, what a wonderful world

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
 The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
 And I think to myself, what a wonderful world”

The soulful rendering of this song evokes vivid images of a vibrant, colourful world. Ever wondered how a sightless person would react to this song? How would he visualize the host of golden Daffodils, fluttering and dancing in the breeze, flash upon that inward eye, which was the  bliss of solitude for Wordsworth?! What a dark, dreary world with everything dyed in monochrome- BLACK !! And yet, those of us who are fortunate enough to be blessed with the miracle of sight, do precious little to restore this gift to our less fortunate brethren, snug in the comfort of our cocooned lives! Here are a few facts about corneal blindness.

FACTSHEET 

Ø      Corneal blindness mostly affects children

Ø      Corneal blindness can be cured only by corneal grafting from a donated eye

Ø      One can pledge to donate eyes during one’s lifetime

Ø      Eyes can be donated only after death

Ø      If not pledged, eye donation can be done with the consent of relatives

Ø      People of all age groups can donate eyes

Ø      In India, there is a requirement of about 1 lakh corneas per year, whereas only 30,000 are donated

Ø      This shortfall can easily be bridged by spreading awareness about eye donation

HOW WE CAN HELP

Spread the good word around- most of us are not aware how a little effort on our part can light up someone’s life!

In the unfortunate event of death of an acquaintance, try to persuade the family to donate the eyes. This is the toughest part, considering the sensitivity of the situation, but if the family can be convinced that

• the eyes of the donor will live on after him,
  
• giving sight to two persons for a lifetime, and
  
• that the procedure of removal is free of cost, simple, hassle-free, & does not cause any disfigurement to the body,

it is quite likely they would agree. So here’s the real test of your persuasive skills! Once you have their consent, here’s what you need to do next.

      Call the nearest eye bank immediately. For Delhi, dial 1919 ( 24 hr-MTNL Toll-free service).Telephone  numbers of eye banks in other cities are available on the website www.lightaneye.org.

      Switch off all fans in the room- cooler or AC, if available, can run.

      Wrap some ice cubes in damp cotton, & keep them on the eyes. This  prevents the tissue from drying up, & helps keep it fesh.

      Keep the head slightly raised with a pillow.

      Doctor/technician from the eye bank will reach the venue within the shortest possible time, collect about 10 ml blood, and remove the corneas, all in 15 minutes.

      Eyes are fit for retrieval upto 6 hours after death.

      Remember, donated corneas are never sold/traded.