India – why Bihar?

Bihar is a butterfly-shaped state in north eastern India - the country’s poorest region.

When we were first invited there by Indian eye surgeon Dr Helen Nirmala Rao, its population was well over 100million, one in every 100 people was completely blind from cataract alone and countless others were blind or at risk of blindness from other easily preventable conditions.

For this sight charity, what better place in which to work? No matter that Bihar was also a difficult and volatile place.
We believe that charities should justify their existence by demonstrating that they are meeting an unmet need. And that they have the expertise and know how to tackle this specific need.

We were invited into Bihar by the Indian ophthalmologist who knew more about delivering eye care to the rural poor than anyone else. 25 years on we are the first port of call for Bihari eye specialists eschewing private practice in India’s big cities (which still attract the vast majority of all doctors).