The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Sankara Nethralaya's research project launched

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 29, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Sankara Nethralaya's research project launched

Staff Reporter

It will pioneer ophthalmic research in nano-technology and stem cell applications

DREAMING BIG: Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram unveils a model of the Sankara Nethralaya's National Institute for Research in Visual Sciences and Ophthalmology in Chennai on Sunday. (From left) A. M. Naik, managing director, L&T; S. S. Badrinath , chairman, Sankara Nethralaya; and Venu Srinivasan, chairman, TVS Motor Company, are also in the picture. — Photo: S. R. Raghunathan

CHENNAI: Formally launching Sankara Nethralaya's project to develop a state-of-the-art facility for frontline research in ophthalmology on Sunday, Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram hailed the country's prowess in tertiary medical care.

The National Institute for Research in Visual Sciences and Ophthalmology (NIRVO) aspires to pioneer ophthalmic research in nano-technology and stem cell applications and become a world-class laboratory.

On the occasion, which also marked the 28th anniversary of Sankara Nethralaya, Mr. Chidambaram said eye care in the country had grown by leaps and bounds. Now, the best ophthalmic care in the world was available in India. In fact, Chennai, more than any other city in India, earned a place of distinction in medical care on the world map.

There were an estimated 16 million blind persons in the country— the largest in any country. Cataract was the leading cause of blindness (58 per cent), followed by glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degenerative disorders and refractive errors.

Knowledge, Mr. Chidambaram said, was the fourth important player in any enterprise after capital, management and labour. In fact, the acquisition and application of knowledge was increasingly determining the future of institutions, enterprises, and even countries. India had a long tradition of learning, be it literature or astronomy. Ancient astronomers who worked without telescopes, satellites or rockets, were able to record planetary movement through ocular observation alone.

Mr. Chidambaram said there was a widespread thirst for knowledge, especially among the traditionally oppressed sections, who had been denied access to it. He pointed to the exponential increase in the number of students from the low-income strata, who were applying for educational loans. Economic background was hardly a determinant in academic excellence, with many top rankers hailing from small towns these days.

"It is important to seize the opportunity and build India as a knowledge society," Mr. Chidambaram said.

Lauding Sankara Nethralaya's steadfast and liberal donors who helped to shape the centre of excellence, he pointed out that virtually anyone could become a donor by volunteering to donate their eyes after death.

Inaugurating the state-of-the-art Affymetrix GeneChip Microarray equipment, Venu Srinivasan, chairman, TVS Motor Company, described Sankara Nethralaya as an iconic institution and flag bearer of Indian medicine.

A. M. Naik, managing director, Larsen and Toubro, dedicated the Vision Research Foundation Referral Laboratory.

S. S. Badrinath, founder-chairman, Sankara Nethralaya, said the NIRVO aimed to become a world-class institution that served the people. Nethralaya's tie up with Aravind Eye Hospital, Tamil Nadu, and L. V. Prasad Institute, Andhra Pradesh, would herald a bright future for ophthalmology.

Lingam Gopal, president, Vision Research Foundation, said the seven-storied complex that will house the NIRVO would be completed by September 2007. The research centre would seek solutions in high-end biochemistry.

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