International Day for a World without Childhood Blindness

Addressing the gathering, Lord Rami Ranger underscored the moral and policy significance of the mission. “The House of Lords stands today not only for tradition and governance, but for conscience and global responsibility. A world without childhood blindness is not an aspiration—it is an achievable goal if governments, philanthropy, and civil society act together.”

The event ended with Lord Rami Ranger and Dr VK Raju honoring the invited dignitaries and a media interaction with networking over high tea.  

Dr Digvijay Singh emphasized that “Childhood blindness affects approximately 1.4 million children worldwide, with nearly 75% residing in Africa and Asia. India alone has an estimated 320,000 blind children. The common causes for childhood blindness include vitamin A deficiency, corneal scarring, congenital cataracts, and retinopathy of prematurity, most of which are preventable or manageable with cost effective interventions.” He goes on to state that limited access, poor awareness and relative low level of importance to pediatric eye care comes in the way of every child being able to see. “This has to change and we can make the change” he affirms. As a pediatric ophthalmologist, Dr Digvijay Singh realizes the impact of saving every child from blindness, “The number of disability free life years that a timely intervention can give a child far exceeds what we can do by treating many adults” he said.

Dr Digvijay Singh receiving Honor from Lord Rami Ranger at the UK Parliament in the presence of Dr VK Raju, Founder president of Eye Foundation of America.