Largest Ever Cataract Camp Held at Jagadguru Kripalu Chikitsalaya

Mangarh, March 7, 2012: Largest Ever Cataract Camp Held at Jagadguru Kripalu Chikitsalaya - by Sushree Janeshwari Devi of JKP India

Lines of elderly villagers, following one another closely with hands on each other's shoulders, saying, "Radhey Radhey" in unison, were about to become some of the 756 successful cataract surgery patients during a 3-day eye camp.

The semi-annual Cataract Surgery Camp was held on March 5-7, 2012, in Bhakti Dham, Mangarh, India. The camp was conducted during the Holi Sadhana program attended by 3,000 devotees from different parts of the world. Dozens of visiting devotees were happily volunteering alongside the hospital staff during their 12-hour-long shifts in the Jagadguru Kripalu Chikitsalya (eye hospital). They participated in such tasks as feeding patients, filing medical charts, folding linens and sterilizing medical equipment.

Jointly sponsored by Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat, Bhakti Dham, Mangarh and Tilganga Eye Center, Kathmandu, Nepal, this free camp was the largest held in the three years since the camps began. During the camp, all patients received free cataract surgeries, prescription medications, follow-up care and dark glasses to wear during their recovery.

Chief surgeon, Dr. Govinda Paudyal, who traveled from Kathmandu with a team of six medical professionals, performed a record 247 surgeries in one day during the camp. "I would like to do this camp four times a year," he said. "We have never advertised this camp because the news travels by word-of-mouth. If we did, we would not be able to handle the number of patients who would show up for free surgeries," he added.

"There was another miracle story during this camp," said K. S. Rathod, a full-time volunteer at the hospital. "At the last camp, a 13-year-old girl's vision was restored after being told by doctors elsewhere that she would never see again. And today, a 10-year-old girl, who was also told by her doctors that her vision could not be corrected, was successfully operated on," he continued.

The cataract camps are one of the many charitable activities conducted by Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat. On March 13th, 2,200 widows of Vrindaban were fed at Prem Mandir in Vrindaban, and parcels of essential items for daily living, such as cooking vessels, clothing and bedding, were given free to everyone.