India Vision Institute launches Drive Safe Campaign screenings in Karnataka

The campaign aims at conducting eye camps for commercial drivers and allied transport workers to check their eyesight. In poor eyesight, the drivers have dispensed eyeglasses mainly on the spot. For other serious eye conditions, the drivers are referred to undergo the proper treatment required for the eye condition. Vision screenings will focus on cities and towns and national and state highways in the state.

The campaign was officially launched in Bangalore and was graced by Anil Kumar TK, Principal Secretary to Government, Department of Health and Family Welfare, L K Dash, Director, Postal Services, Department of Posts and IVI’s CEO Vinod Daniel, along with representatives from Shell.

Speaking at the launch, IVI’s CEO Vinod Daniel said, “We are pleased to join hands with Shell in the next phase of the Shell Drive Safe India Campaign. Earlier, during October 2021-March 2022, the campaign screened nearly 60,000 commercial vehicle drivers and truckers in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. IVI’s previous vision screenings among 80,000 drivers revealed that 59 per cent of drivers had uncorrected refractive errors, of which 24 per cent required distance correction, 35 per cent needed near correction, and 2 per cent had severely compromised vision.”

“An IVI survey among drivers showed that the three reasons they did not get their vision checked were lack of awareness, affordability, and access.  This program is developed to address all these constraints,” he added.

Latika Taneja, Head of Corporate Relations, Shell India said, “We work with communities and global partners to improve road safety in the countries where we operate. Drive Safe is an important community initiative for us, especially in India, where road fatalities are high. In partnership with India Vision Institute and other NGO partners, Shell India is committed to this unique initiative to bring down the traffic accidents attributed to impaired vision.”