State-wise Cornea Collection and Transplantation under the National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment (NPCBVI) in India: A Record-based Study

Tarun P Tejwani; Krisha Tarun Tejwani; Kalpna T Tejwani

doi:10.55489/njmr.160320261331

Authors

Tarun P Tejwani Department of Ophthalmology, SMIMER, Surat, Gujarat, India
Krisha Tarun Tejwani Department of Community Medicine, SMIMER, Surat, Gujarat, India
Kalpna T Tejwani Department of Ophthalmology, Gurunanak Hospital, Surat, Gujarat, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55489/njmr.160320261331

Keywords:

Cornea transplantation, Cornea collection, Eye banking, NPCBVI, India

Abstract

Background: Corneal blindness is one of the major preventable causes of visual impairment in India, with a persistent gap between the demand for and availability of donor corneas. The present study aimed to assess national trends and state-wise variations in cornea collection and corneal transplantation over a five-year period (2016-17 to 2020-21) under the National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment (NPCBVI).

Methodology: Retrospective record analysis was done using data from NPCBVI from 2016-17 to 2020-21 for cornea collection and transplantation. Data from state/UT wise were collected and rates per 1,00,000 population were calculated on the basis of estimated population.

Results: While cornea collection was rising slowly till 2017-18 (71,709; 5.76/lakh) and subsequently fell sharply to 17,402 (1.29/lakh) in 2020-21, cornea transplantation also followed a similar trend, declining from 31,417 (2.52/lakh) to 11,859 (0.88/lakh) over the five years. Marked regional variation was observed, with some states like Chandigarh, Telangana, Puducherry, Mizoram, and Gujarat showing higher collection and transplantation rates and other states namely, Bihar, Jharkhand, and North Eastern states lagged behind.

Conclusions: The country of India shows marked regional disparities concerning corneal procurement and transplantation. The number has fallen sharply since the time of the coronavirus pandemic.

References

1. Basak SK. Data gap: Transplantable corneal blindness, current transplantation, and eye banking in India. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2023 Sep;71(9):3125-3127. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/IJO.IJO_2096_23 PMid:37602596 PMCid:PMC10565946

2. Chaurasia S, Dureja R, Roy A, Das S. The expanding roles of eye banks in India: Past, present, and future. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2024 Jul 1;72(Suppl 4):S542-S552. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/IJO.IJO_2137_23 PMid:38454864 PMCid:PMC11338426

3. Gupta N, Tandon R, Gupta SK, Sreenivas V, Vashist P. Burden of corneal blindness in India. Indian J Community Med. 2013 Oct;38(4):198-206. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/0970-0218.120153 PMid:24302819 PMCid:PMC3831688

4. Sharma N, Arora T, Singhal D, Maharana PK, Garg P, Nagpal R, et al. Procurement, storage and utilization trends of eye banks in India. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2019 Jul;67(7):1056-1059. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/ijo.IJO_1551_18 PMid:31238409 PMCid:PMC6611250

5. Arya SK, Raj A, Deswal J, Kohli P, Rai R. Donor demographics and factors affecting corneal utilisation in Eye Bank of North India. Int Ophthalmol. 2021 May;41(5):1773-1781. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10792-021-01736-x PMid:33893934 PMCid:PMC8087588

6. Christy JS, Bhadari AH, Mathews P, Srinivasan M, Vanathi M. Evolution of eye banking in India - A review. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2023 Sep;71(9):3132-3141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/IJO.IJO_1882_23 PMid:37602599 PMCid:PMC10565934

7. Madkaiker A, Venugopal A, Ghorpade A, Ravindran M, Ragappa R, Sithiq MU. Eye banking and keratoplasty trend analysis during the COVID-19 pandemic: A South Indian observational study. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2023 Feb;71(2):498-502. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/ijo.IJO_1368_22 PMid:36727346 PMCid:PMC10228964

8. Nathawat R, Sharma N, Sachdev MS, Sinha R, Mukherjee G. Immediate impact of COVID-19 on eye banking in India. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2021 Dec;69(12):3653-3657. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/ijo.IJO_1171_21 PMid:34827016 PMCid:PMC8837375

9. Aiello F, Gallo Afflitto G, Pocobelli G, Ponzin D, Nucci C. Effect of Covid-19 on Eye Banks and Corneal Transplantations: Current Perspectives. Clin Ophthalmol. 2022 Dec 30;16:4345-4354. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2147/OPTH.S379849 PMid:36606249 PMCid:PMC9809163

10. Das AV, Kommu DR, Chilukuri R, Chilukuri H, Chaurasia S. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the trends in corneal donor mortality data from Eye Bank records in India. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2022 Sep;70(9):3289-3293. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/ijo.IJO_778_22 PMid:36018105 PMCid:PMC9675537

11. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment (NPCBVI) [Internet]. New Delhi: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; [cited 2026 March 10]. Available from: https://npcbvi.mohfw.gov.in/

12. Vashist P, Senjam SS, Gupta V, Gupta N, Shamanna BR, Wadhwani M, et al. Blindness and visual impairment and their causes in India: Results of a nationally representative survey. PLoS One. 2022 Jul 21;17(7):e0271736. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0271736 PMID: 35862402 PMCID: PMC9302795

13. Parihar JKS. Corneal blindness and eye banking: Current status and challenges ahead. Ann Natl Acad Med Sci (India) 2024;60(4):241-243. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25259/ANAMS_226_2024

14. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. State/UT-wise Cornea Collection and Corneal Transplantation under National Programme for Control of Blindness & Visual Impairment from 2016–2017 to 2020–21 [Internet]. New Delhi: Open Government Data (OGD) Platform India; 2022 Mar 30 [cited 2026 March 11]. Available from: https://www.data.gov.in/resource/stateut-wise-cornea-collection-and-corneal-transplantation-under-national-programme

15. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (IN), Department of Health and Family Welfare. Measures to Check Population Growth. Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2996 [Internet]. New Delhi: Government of India; 2021 Aug 6 [cited 2026 March 15]. p. 3, Annexure I. Available from: https://sansad.in/getFile/loksabhaquestions/annex/176/AU2996.pdf?source=pqals

16. Parekh M, Nathawat R, Parihar JKS, Jhanji V, Sharma N. Impact of COVID-19 restrictions on corneal tissue donation and utilization rate - Time to bring reforms? Indian J Ophthalmol. 2021 Dec;69(12):3782-3784. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/ijo.IJO_2714_21 PMid:34827052 PMCid:PMC8837285

17. Eye Bank Association of America. Statistical Report [Internet]. Chantilly (VA): Eye Bank Association of America; [cited 2026 Mar 11]. Available from: https://restoresight.org/members/publications/statistical-report/

18. Eye Bank Association of America. 2024 Eye Banking Statistical Report [Internet]. Washington (DC): Eye Bank Association of America; 2025 [cited 2026 Mar 11]. p. 6. Available from: https://restoresight.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2024_StatisticalReport_FINAL.pdf

19. Tay C, Reddy H, Mehta JS. Advances in corneal transplantation. Eye (Lond). 2025 Sep;39(13):2497-2508. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-025-03898-9 PMid:40615612 PMCid:PMC12402337

20. Hashemian MN, Zia MJ, Khorrami-Nejad M, Abed QS, Hashemian H. Long-term outcomes of corneal transplantation: a review of 8,378 patients. BMC Ophthalmol. 2025 Jan 22;25(1):39. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-024-03826-7 PMid:39844058 PMCid:PMC11756154