Andhra Pradesh - Tirupati   

TTD-Shankara Netralaya eye hospital opens

TIRUPATI: ‘Srinivasa Shankara Nethrayala’, the eye hospital spread across 1,100 sq.metres on the second floor of the TTD Central hospital here, was formally inaugurated by Chief Minister K. Rosaiah on Monday.

With no major eye hospital in a radius of 100 km around Tirupati, the TTD management found it fit to establish the state-of-the-art ophthalmic centre here, for the benefit of the visiting pilgrims and the poor people of Rayalaseema. This hospital is a joint venture of the TTD and Chennai-based eye hospital, Shankara Nethralaya.

While Ajay Modi, a Delhi-based philanthropist and former local legislator M.Venkatramana jointly presented Rs.50 lakh for the facility last month, Chennai-based industrialist Ashok Rathi donated another Rs.50 lakh to the hospital.

The hospital requires an immediate investment of Rs.3 crore. Speaking after receiving the cheque from Mr.Rathi, Mr. Rosaiah appealed to philanthropists to shoulder the responsibility of reaching quality medicare to the poor.

Shankara Nethralaya is already known for rendering free service at the TTD information centre in Chennai and the alliance gets formalised with this full-fledged unit, said TTD Chairman D.K.Adikesavulu. The hospital chairman Dr. S. Badrinath, who termed the new facility the Tirupati branch of Sankara Nethralaya, said it would be equipped in the first phase to treat 16,000 patients and conduct 6,500 cataract surgeries.

MP Chinta Mohan, Ministers Galla Aruna (R&B), P. Ramachandra Reddy (Environment) and D.Prasada Rao (Revenue) were present.

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