Mr. Satish Chandra who belongs to one of the several poor families residing in a remote village in India has to struggle every month to meet basic need of their 5 family members with his meager amount of INR 2,000 per month earned through daily farming.

Satish was very happy the day they were blessed with a girl child after two boys, and lovingly named the girl, Pratibha. But his happiness did not last long as he came to know that her daughter was not responding to light normally. He and his wife were consoled by the elders of the village that their daughter will be alright by the time she is 4 months old.

Lack of education coupled with ignorance prevented them from visiting any doctor. Waiting for 4 months did not show any improvement in Pratibhafs condition. Pratibha had still not developed the social smile which every parent craves for. This worried Satish further. Besides Pratibha's condition, another concern that bogged him down was his financial condition.

He knew that he did not have the means to pursue a treatment for his daughter. But how could a father stay put? He finally decided to sell a piece of land or borrow from a local moneylender. While he was exploring these avenues to arrange the finances, he heard from a villager about the Gandhi Eye Hospital in Aligarh, which conducts free surgeries for poor patients.  Satish and his wife immediately rushed to Aligarh and reported at Gandhi Eye Hospital on  August 30, 2010 with the hope that the twinkle of their eye,  little Pratibha will be cured. 

At Gandhi Eye Hospital, Pratibha was examined by Dr. PritiPal Singh, who was trained in Pediatric Ophthalmology at Dr. Shrofffs Charity Eye Hospital (SCEH) for 3 months under this Project. Pratibha was examined under anesthesia and was diagnosed with Bilateral Congenital Cataract.  Dr. l Singh advised surgery for both eyes and being aware of the economical status of Pratibhai's parents, he assured them of free treatment with the support of ORBIS International.

Pratibha first eye was operated for Extra Capsular Cataract Extraction (ECCE) on August 31, 2010 and the second eye on September 7, 2010. Dr. Singh performed primary capsulorrhexis on Pratibha. This is an essential technique for cataract extraction learnt by Dr. Singh during the ORBIS supported training at SCEH, Delhi.  As Pratibha's eyes are still growing, doctor decided not to implant intra ocular lens (IOL) at such a small age. However, it will be done when she is 3 years old.

After the patches were removed from her eyes, the ophthalmologist noticed a sign of visual recovery. The expression on the faces of her parents revealed their joy in their hearts. She was discharged from the hospital on September 10, 2010 with the spectacles. During the follow up visit to Gandhi Eye Hospital after 10 days, Satish and his wife were happy to see a smile on their 4 month-old daughter's face. 

'We are thankful to ORBIS and also to the entire team of Gandhi Eye Hospital for their services to poor!' shared an emotional Satish, Pratibha's father.

Pratibha is one among the 143 such needy children who have received free surgical treatment in 2010 at Gandhi Eye Hospital with the support of ORBIS International.