India houses 20% of the world’s visually impaired population, and the largest number of blind children in any country. Experts from Orbis India and Sightsavers say that most of the blindness is preventable, especially in children and teenagers. Opening up the conversation around CSR for the visually impaired and overall eye health care becomes all the more relevant in the present day.
It has the potential to increase healthcare access for the rural and urban poor, thus decreasing the cases of preventable blindness. A handful of organisations are already running successful programmes to stop preventable blindness while others are making visually challenged persons more employable so they can live with dignity and independence and CSR funding is also being given to free cataract surgeries.
Here are some of the top companies doing CSR for eye health in general and also the visually impaired that have made an impact in India.
Top Companies Doing CSR for the Visually Impaired
CSR to Bring Clear Vision to Remote Himalayan Communities
Government of Himachal Pradesh along with redBus and VisionSpring Foundation, are extending vision care services to underserved Himalayan communities, aiming to reach 5,000 people through eye screenings, eyeglasses dispensing, eye care referrals, and awareness campaigns in Himachal Pradesh, India.
Government of Himachal Pradesh and redBus is supporting this initiative, which is part of VisionSpring Foundation’s broader mission to address the 55-crore people across India who lack the eyeglasses they need to see clearly, including 30 lakh people in Himachal Pradesh with limited or no access to eye care.
Eyeglasses are a proven, cost-effective solution, increasing earning potential by up to 33.4% and boosting productivity by up to 32%. Clear vision can also enhance learning outcomes for children in schools and make roads safer for drivers and transport workers.
From 9 October to 18 October 2025, VisionSpring Foundation team, government officials, eye health experts, and school children from across the world will trek across the Himalayas, visiting important and remote areas in Shimla and Kinnaur districts such as Shimla, Rohru, Jiskun, Jakha, Rupin Pass, Reckong Peo, and Sangla.
The eye-screenings will also be conducted for communities in Chitkul, which is the first village of India, and for drivers on some of the most dangerous roads in the world across the two districts, especially near Reckong Peo. The objective is to take the gift of clear vision through eyeglasses and eye care to these remote and underserved and raise awareness about the importance of clear vision in the state. The intervention has already started and will continue after the completion of the trek.
Through this initiative, VisionSpring Foundation will provide eyeglasses as part of its: See to Earn program – Equipping working-age adults to increase productivity and income; See to Learn program – helping students improve academic performance; See to be Safe program – Helping commercial vehicle drivers and allied transport workers to drive safely on the mountainous roads.
9 Vision Centres Opened on World Sight Day in India
On World Sight Day 2025, Standard Chartered has announced the opening of nine vision centres including four with futuristic facilities, taking the total to 651 centres nationwide. This is part of the Bank’s flagship initiative ‘Seeing is Believing’ which endeavours to eliminate avoidable blindness in India.
Seeing is Believing programme has completed 22 years and operates across 21 states and two Union Territories. It has grown into one of the country’s most impactful eye health interventions, transforming millions of lives and building an ecosystem of care. So far, under this initiative, the Bank has screened over one crore patients while 11 lakh spectacles have been dispensed.
Out of total 651 vision centres, the Bank has 79 futuristic centres which are already redefining eye care through advanced technology across 17 districts. With the evolution of technology and the changing eye care situation, there is a growing need to scale-up primary eye care services by leveraging technology. These futuristic facilities extend the scope of existing vision centres to target detection of all chronic eye conditions that are currently beyond the realm of primary eye care.
One another key focus of Seeing is Believing is empowering women in eye care delivery. Currently, 50% of these Vision Centres are operated by women, providing not only essential healthcare but also career pathways for young women to be trained as vision technicians, ophthalmic nursing assistants, patient counsellors, optometrists and more.
Beyond primary care, ‘Seeing is Believing’ is also addressing India’s eye health workforce gap through its Eye Care Academies. Four academies are already operational in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Delhi, and Bihar with a fifth academy being launched this year in Vrindavan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. Together, these academies have created a pipeline of 1.26 lakh trained professionals so far, including allied ophthalmic paramedics, vision technicians, optometrists, and ophthalmologists, many of them women.
ZEISS collaborates with Indian Institute of Science for Research on AI for Eyecare
ZEISS in India announced collaboration with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, a premier research institute, to foster cutting edge research in February this year. ZEISS has established a research facility for developing high fidelity Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions for the betterment of eye-care and to upskill students in AI technologies. The initiative, supported by the Spectrum Lab in the Department of Electrical Engineering at IISc, aims to harness the transformative potential of AI to enhance eye-care practices and improve patient outcomes.
This collaboration aims to propel improvements in eye care solutions from India for the world considering the rising prevalence of vision impairments worldwide. The facility will act as a centre for cutting-edge research, allowing IISc researchers to investigate how AI could transform early diagnosis in eye care by providing innovative solutions that streamline processes, increase accuracy, and improve patient outcomes. ZEISS India and IISc have joined forces to explore and promote the use of advanced AI technologies in ophthalmology.
Over 5,000 Children Screened for Eye Health across Palghar, Nanded, Mumbai, and Delhi
Roche Diagnostics’ India and Neighbouring Markets under the aegis of its flagship CSR initiative Project Roshni conducted eye check-up camps to screen 5,000 children across Palghar, Nanded, Mumbai, and Delhi in February this year.
It partnered with VisionSpring Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to ensuring affordable access to eyecare through free eye screenings and distribution of eyeglasses to those who are visually impaired. The screening programme commenced in Palghar, a primarily tribal dominated district located around 100 kms from Mumbai, covering 18 government schools. In Nanded, the eye check-up camps were organised at 5 government schools and another 5 schools in Mumbai and Delhi.
Started in 2015, Roche’s Project Roshni follows a comprehensive approach to community upliftment in underprivileged districts across Maharashtra. It offers anemia screening, school infrastructure development, nutrition support, financial literacy and has now added vision care to its areas of support.
Initiative launched Health & Eye Check-Up Drive for Delhi Police’s Frontline Warriors
RBL Bank, under its CSR initiative, ‘Dhanvantri’, launched a comprehensive health and eye check-up drive for 1000 frontline personnel of Delhi police in February this year. The program, focusing on essential health parameters including vision care, acknowledges the critical role of police officers in ensuring public safety. The launch event took place in Delhi on February 18, 2025, where the first batch of officers underwent detailed health screenings, including general health check-ups, vision assessments, and preventive care consultations.
The event was graced by DCP Mr. Rajeev Ranjan (Welfare), Addl. DCP and Mr. Manoj Kumar Meena (Welfare), in the presence of senior dignitaries from RBL Bank including Mr. Rajesh Gunde (Head Retail collection, Litigation and FCU).
Awareness initiative around diabetes-led vision impairment at Maha Kumbh 2025
The Eyebetes Foundation, led by Mumbai-based eye surgeon Dr. Nishant Kumar launched a charitable health initiative at the Maha Kumbh 2025. The transformative mission was designed to provide life-changing eye care and diabetes screenings to tens of thousands of devotees and frontline personnel attending the sacred event.
With a team of 100 professionals, Eyebetes Foundation offered free vision and diabetes screenings to over 20,000-30,000 pilgrims and over 5,000 uniformed personnel, ensuring that preventable blindness and undiagnosed diabetes do not hinder the lives of those who have embarked on this deeply spiritual journey.
CSR Project Rolls out Eye Health Camps for Ennore’s Fishing Community
Coromandel International Ltd in collaboration with Sankara Netralaya Eye Hospital, rolled out a series of 10 eye health camps starting January this year to address the healthcare challenges faced by the fishing community in Ennore. This initiative aims to provide accessible and essential eye care services to the fishermen and their families, who face significant barriers in accessing specialty healthcare due to time constraints and the lack of dedicated ophthalmology facilities in the region.
The community’s livelihood in Ennore is based on fishing during the morning hours, and net mending during the rest of the day – leaving the community with little time for hospital visits for checkups. The eye camps, held at various locations in Ennore, are targeted at individuals primarily between the ages of 40 and 65.
The initiative covers areas such as Periya Kuppam, Chinna Kuppam, Sivanpadai Veedhi, Thazhang kuppam, Ernavur Kuppam, Nettukuppam, Nehru Nagar, Kamaraj Nagar, Kamalamma Nagar, and Thazhangkuppam Quarters.
CSR initiative to provide vision screenings to tea and coffee workers in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala
VisionSpring Foundation recently collaborated with The United Planters’ Association of Southern India (UPASI) under its ongoing ‘Livelihoods in Focus’ outreach programme. The partnership aims to provide vision screenings and corrective eyeglasses to more than 2,00,000 tea and coffee workers and their families in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala by 2028, transforming these states into clear vision regions.
The ‘Livelihoods in Focus’ outreach programme is designed to boost the productivity and earning potential of tea, cocoa, coffee and artisan communities by correcting their vision through eyeglasses. The programme focuses on agricultural workers because they have many tasks that require clear sight, and their work can have an outsized impact on the economy.
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