Doctor provides 30,000 free surgeries to fight avoidable blindness
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Dr. Bhavin Patel, a retina specialist in Surat, Gujarat, India, has performed over 30,000 free eye surgeries in villages across South Gujarat.
He began this work after returning to his home region in 2008 and noticing many patients arrived with conditions that had progressed too far for effective treatment. A 2015-2019 national survey found that nearly 93% of blindness in India is avoidable, with cataracts being a major cause, and rural areas face greater risk due to late diagnosis. Dr.
Patel’s trust now runs almost 40 monthly camps, reaching villages in Navsari, Bardoli, Vyara and Valsad. Volunteers, including optometrists and local tribal members, screen residents for cataracts, providing glasses for simple cases and transporting surgery patients to his hospital in Surat. Patients receive free treatment, lodging, and follow-up care in their communities. Beyond surgery, Dr. Patel established a training center in 2025 to teach visually impaired people computer skills, smartphone use, and mobility, with ten people already completing the program.
He hopes to expand this outreach to reach every village and prevent further cases of avoidable blindness.
