Australian High Comission conducts vision screening for school children
27 Nov 2014 12:00 PM IST
Children from the school who were identified with vision problems were issued glasses
Australian high commissioner Patrick Suckling distributing spectacles to students of Adidravidar Welfare School at Palavakkam.
Chennai: Students of Adi Dravidar Welfare Higher Secondary School were given free spectacles on Wednesday as a part of the vision screening programme conducted in Chennai by the Australian Consulate. Australian High Commissioner Patrick Suckling distributed the glasses to 60 students of the school. Earlier, 480 students had their eyes tested, of which 60 of them had to wear glasses.
Under the Consulate General’s direct aid programme, India Vision institute, LV Prasad Eye Institute of Hyderabad and Brian Holden Vision Institute in Sydney jointly support this vision screening programme that would further benefit 4,000 school students between the ages of four and 15 in and around schools in Chennai.
“Australia’s links with India in a people to people contact makes our relationship strong with a bright future together. The only area where the two countries are rivals is cricket,” said Suckling, addressing the gathering of children who received the spectacles. According to Vinod Daniel, Chairman, AusHeritage, one in 10 children in India do not have proper vision and there are lakhs of people in the country who did not get treated for their visual impairment.
Children from the school who were identified with vision problems were issued glasses in a child friendly way with a mascot of a child wearing spectacles, representing India Vision Institute. “Earlier, I could not see properly and that obstructed my reading capabilities. Now, I have clear vision,” said M.Jeevalakshmi of Class 6 who received the glasses.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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