Vision Care celebrates 25 years with launch of ‘Nethralokana Sathkara’ to award 25,000 spectacles am

Having successfully enhanced the vision of hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankans for quarter century, Vision Care will celebrate its 25 year anniversary, by officially launching ‘Nethralokana Sathkara’, a pioneering initiative to distribute 25,000 spectacles among deserving people from different parts of Sri Lanka at no cost.

Starting next week, Nethralokana Sathkara will be rolled out in six major cities of the country: Galle, Kandy, Kurunegala, Jaffna, Anuradhapura and Colombo. In parallel to the programs in the regional cities, the company’s branches that are situated around these six main cities will also roll out programs of their own, strengthening the project’s island-wide reach and distribution. 

Expressing his views about their significant initiative, Vision Care Chairman/Chief Executive Officer Dasantha Fonseka said, “Launching Nethralokana Sathkara on the outset of our 25th anniversary is quite momentous for us all at Vision Care. We have been pioneers in introducing quality and affordable eye care solutions as well as state-of-the-art optometry technologies at our island-wide branches, helping enhance the vision of thousands of Sri Lankans over the years. With Nethralokana Sathkara, we wanted to mark this occasion by reaching out to deserving people in the country, and help empower their lives through what we do best, enhance vision.”

The initial phase of Nethralokana Sathkara will be the calling of applications, which will commence from 24 April to 9 May for residents in the Galle and Kandy areas. Jaffna and Kurunegala applications are scheduled from 8 May to 23 May, while Anuradhapura and Colombo applications will be called out from 22 May till 6 June.

This will be followed by a comprehensive eye test for the chosen applicants from mid-May onwards. Based on the tests conducted by qualified optometrists of Vision Care, a reading or a prescribed spectacle will be given to the applicant at the final distribution of spectacles, which is scheduled for June onwards.

“This program also acts as a reminder to our purpose as an organisation every single day, which is: To give Sri Lankans the best possible vision, enabling them to see the world and improve their lives through quality products and services. By eventually reaching out to 25,000 families and extending the program to all parts of Sri Lanka, we believe that this initiative will turn out to be a platform to create much needed awareness and education about vision impairment and preventable blindness among Sri Lankans,” Fonseka stated further.

The Sri Lankan Government has also appreciated Vision Care’s effort in launching such a magnanimous scheme, as it strongly complements ‘Vision 2020’, the national programme developed by the government to eliminate avoidable blindness from Sri Lanka by the year 2020.

The application forms will be made available through Vision Care branches island-wide, and will be given out on a ‘first-come-first-serve’ basis. More information on the opening and closing dates for applications will be informed through the media starting next week.

Pix by Ruwan Walpola

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From left: Vision Care Sales Manager – Corporate Office Srimantha Wewelwala, Nethralokana Sathkara Deputy Project Chair Vidya Jayarathna, Vision Care Managing Director Janaka Fonseka, Vision2020 Sri Lanka Consultant Ophthalmologist and National Coordinator Dr. Muditha Kulatunga, Vision Care Chairman and 

Chief Executive Officer Dasantha Fonseka, Vision Care General Manager Harsha Maduranga, Nethralokana Sathkara Project Chair Chamila Welikala,