How this renowned doctor from Nepal helped over 1 lakh people see again

Dr Sanduk Ruit is an ophthalmologist from Nepal who has mastered the art of restoring people's eyesight in just five minutes. He has cured about 1,20,000 people till now and has become synonymous with God among the poor and blind people. He has set up the Himalayan Cataract Project to cure blindness in Indian states such as Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and West Bengal. He has aset up Tilganga Eye Centre in Nepal and has also organised many eye camps in different places to provide basic eye care.

According to the World Health Organisation, there are about 285 million people who are believed to be visually impaired worldwide, out of which 39 million people are blind and 246 million have low vision. Cataract is said to be the leading cause of blindness in low- and middle-income countries.

A blind person who does not even belong to a well-to-do background usually has little to no hope of being able to see again. Dr Ruit has proved to be a messiah for all these people, offering a simple cataract microsurgery technique costing only $25. They cover large distances, from many remote villages, to get themselves checked by him with the hope of being able to see again. He himself has tried his best to reach out to as many rural communities as possible.

Sanduk performs a simple surgery in which after a small incision is made in the eyes of the patient, the cloudy cataracts are removed and then replaced by an artificial lens. This entire process takes approximately five minutes, as told by Dr Ruit to CNN.

Patients' bandages are removed one day after the surgery and just like that, the patients are able to see again. First, the patients are hesitant and have a blurred vision but are soon able to see clearly. Now the methodology that he uses is also being taught in American medical schools.

Dr Ruit was born in a remote area in Nepal in 1955 and completed his education from India, the Netherlands, and the United States. When he was 17 years old, his sister suffered from curable tuberculosis but due to the lack of resources, she eventually succumbed to it and died. This was the defining moment in Sanduk's life when he decided to dedicate his life to a path that will benefit others and not just himself. He told CNN,

I am so grateful that I can make a difference in so many people's lives.

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