Arunachal: Remote border village Kaho adopted for universal eye care drive

Kaho, a small border village in Arunachal Pradesh’s Anjaw district, has been adopted for free and universal eye care under a joint initiative of the Arunachal Academy of Ophthalmology and the state unit of the National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment.

The move targets one of the country’s most remote and strategically sensitive settlements, located in the Kibithoo circle near the Indo-Tibet (China) border. Kaho lies around 8 to 10 kilometres from the Line of Actual Control along the Lohit river and is home to roughly 75 to 100 residents, largely from the Meyor community.

Health officials described the adoption as a focused effort to eliminate preventable blindness in a frontier region where access to specialised medical services remains limited due to terrain, distance and connectivity challenges.

Under the programme, medical teams will organise regular eye screening camps in the village at two-month intervals. Services will include diagnosis and treatment of cataract, refractive errors and glaucoma. Free spectacles will be distributed, while patients requiring surgical or advanced care will be referred to appropriate facilities. Awareness campaigns on eye hygiene and early detection of visual impairment will also be conducted.

State programme officer Dr Taba Khanna said the initiative aims to ensure that no resident is left without basic eye care because of geography or financial constraints.

AAO president Dr D Kaling Darang noted that remote border villages often struggle to access consistent healthcare services. The adoption model, he said, seeks to guarantee comprehensive eye care coverage for every resident, regardless of age or income.

Periodic follow-ups will be carried out to monitor outcomes and assess progress towards full visual health coverage in the area. Authorities expect the sustained model to serve as a template for similar interventions in other remote villages under the Vibrant Villages programme.

Local residents and community leaders have welcomed the decision, stating that improved healthcare support will strengthen quality of life in a settlement that has gained prominence as India’s easternmost village and is gradually witnessing infrastructure growth.