REMOTE OUTREACH CATARACT PROGRAM

The Remote Outreach Cataract Program by Ananda Sangh was born out of an idea shared by the 3rd Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche and the eminent ophthalmologist Dr. Sanduk Ruit. 

They wanted to raise awareness that cataracts are treatable, reach out to people in remote areas where eye care is not available, and offer free treatment to the poor. 

The Ananda Sangh’s Cataract Outreach Program was initiated in 1995. Since then, it has taken place at least once per year. Between 1995 and September 2024, Ananda Sangh conducted 35 cataract programs. 

From August 1st to September 6, 2024, a team undertook a Remote Outreach Screening Program for the entire remote Upper Dolpo region. A total of 2,507 people were screened, and 114 were diagnosed with cataracts. All cataract patients were aged 65 or older. However, due to the long distance from their homes to the surgical site, only 62 of them were able to undergo surgery and intraocular lens implants. (The surgeries and lens implants were sponsored by another organization.) Read the report on this Outreach Screening by the coordinator, Mr. Thinly Ngodup.

To date, Ananda Sangh has screened 86,100 people living in remote areas of Nepal. Of these, 7,256 underwent cataract surgery and received an intraocular lens implant.

In June 2025, surgeries for the Ananda Sangh’s 36th Free Remote Outreach Cataract Program took place at Pullahari Monastery. Individuals with cataracts were identified through screening at 21 rural locations in the Kathmandu Valley, including Pullahari Monastery. A total of 6,296 people with impaired vision were examined. Of these, 402 underwent cataract surgery and intraocular implantation at Pullahari Monastery.

The team of four ophthalmologists was led by Dr. Sanduk Ruit, a renowned surgeon at Tilganga Eye Centre in Bagmati Province, Nepal.