Eye Care

In our first eye camp since the COVID pandemic, we will be traveling to interior villages north of the Krishna river (Amrabad Tiger Reserve) where tigers were once abundant and still roam. The villages do not have electricity, and temperatures will be over 100 degrees F every day. The Chenchus living here do not have

We are committed to a sustained presence for eye care in the Chenchu communities. During this trip, we revisited the villages of Marripalem, Chinthala, and Thummalabailu to conduct follow-up eye camps as well as first-time camps in Davupalli and Nandigudem. In this photo of a community meeting in Marripalem, villagers are recounting success stories of

In March 2019, our volunteers conducted eye camps in the Chenchu villages in the Eastern portion of Nagarjuna Sagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve. These villages, including the beautiful Palutla (with its majestic waterfall), are particularly remote – Some are not easily accessible by vehicles, especially in the rainy season.

Our second comprehensive eye camps refined the processes developed in the Central Nallamala forest camp. In the villages of Nandigudem, Chilakacherla, Mallikarjunapuram, and Y-Cherlopalli, we examined nearly 600 patients. As before, we chose for our location a schoolhouse that was modified to be an eye clinic with the help of eager schoolchildren (See video). A

Our first comprehensive eye camp was a great success, screening over 500 people. We chose the villages of Chinthala, Thummalabailu, Marripalem, and Peddacheruvu, because they were the highest visibility villages, and we had significant relationships with the community members already.  Prior to conducting our clinic, we met with other organizational leaders who were conducting a training program

This visit built the foundation for subsequent eye camps. I visited the central Chenchu villages along the Srisailam-Dornala road starting in my once-home village of Thummalabailu. In re-connecting with people I once knew, I asked about what access they have to eye care currently. I learned that in the forest areas themselves, there is no