Archive · 3 Sep 2026
Ophthalmologists Seek Mandatory Eye-Donation Consent For Driving Licences
Doctors who treat eye problems want people to be asked about eye donation when they get or renew a driving licence.
People could choose to have their wishes officially recorded.
This might help hospitals and eye banks know whom to contact after someone dies.
Corneas, the clear front parts of the eyes, usually need to be collected within about six hours after death.
India needs many more corneas than it currently receives.
About 250,000 corneas are needed each year, but only around 50,000 eye donations are received.
Some people become blind because their corneas are damaged, and transplants can help some of them see again.
Doctors also want trained social workers to speak with families about donation.
They say a better system could reduce waiting times for corneal transplants.
Indian ophthalmologists want eye-donation preferences recorded when people apply for or renew driving licences.
India needs about 250,000 corneas annually but receives approximately 50,000 eye donations.
Recorded consent could help eye banks retrieve corneas within the roughly six-hour medical window after death.
Corneal damage causes an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 new blindness cases in India each year.
Ophthalmologists also proposed trained social workers counsel families and improve links among hospitals, eye banks and authorities.
- Who
- Indian ophthalmologists, including Dr Shashi Kapoor, are proposing the change.
- What
- They want eye-donation consent recorded during driving-licence applications and renewals.
- When
- The proposal was reported on September 3, 2026, during National Eye Donation Fortnight, observed from August 25 to September 8.
- Where
- The proposal concerns India and was reported from Mumbai.
- Why
- India has a large gap between annual cornea demand and available eye donations, while recorded consent could speed up retrieval.
- Annual cornea need
- About 250,000 corneas in India
- Annual eye donations
- Approximately 50,000
- Corneal blindness cases
- An estimated 25,000 to 30,000 new cases annually
- Cornea retrieval window
- Around six hours after death
- Transplant waiting time
- Patients may wait six to nine months
- Awareness observance
- National Eye Donation Fortnight runs from August 25 to September 8
- Existing provision
- BMC hospitals introduced an eye-donation provision on death certificates about a decade ago