Over 2 lakh visit Kumbh eye camp, CM Yogi visits hours before its closure

Mahakumbh Nagar: More than two lakh people have been tested for eyesight or eye-related ailments at a mega health camp that operated at the Mahakumbh Nagar from January 6 to February 27, organisers said on Thursday.

The 'Netra Kumbh' hosted at Sector 6 of the mela area ended a day after the culmination of the Maha Kumbh, with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visiting it hours before its closure.

The eye camp was hosted by 'Saksham' with the support of other charitable organisations to aid pilgrims and other visitors during the Kumbh Mela.

The religious spectacle that takes place once in 12 years, began on January 13 (Paush Purnima) and saw grand processions of Naga Sadhus and three 'Amrit Snans'. It ended with the final auspicious 'snan' on 'Mahashivratri' on Wednesday.

Adityanath visited Prayagraj's mela area, including the 'Sangam' site, and engaged in a number of other activities.

Around 3:30 pm, he visited the 'Netra Kumbh' after paying obeisance at Lete Hue Hanuman temple near the Fort that faces the 'Triveni Sangam'.

He was accompanied by the two deputy chief ministers of the state -- Brajesh Pathak and Keshav Prasad Maurya.

Interacting with media later in the evening, he said over 66 crore people have taken a dip in the river at the confluence site since the beginning of the Kumbh Mela 2025.

In a post on X, the chief minister praised the work done by the organisers and said "restoring someone's eyesight is like giving him a new life".

"Today, along with respected members of my cabinet, I attended the 'Closing Declaration and Blessing Ceremony' of Netra Kumbh-2025, Prayagraj, organised under the guidance of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the world's largest cultural organisation," Adityanath wrote in Hindi in the social media platform.

"Restoring someone's eyesight is like giving him a new life. Hearty congratulations and best wishes to the Sangh Parivar and all the volunteers associated with it for the successful organisation of the innovative service project like Netra Kumbh! @RSSorg," he posted along with some photographs of his visit.

The camp was scheduled to close on Thursday but it was extended for a day.

On its closing day, doctors and other staff attended to a large group of patients, providing free services before closing the doors late evening.

"We had made 42 registration counters, and a team of 40 doctors and other staff attended to patients all these days. Over two lakh people have been clinically tested for eyesight or eye-related ailments from January 6 till today," Dr Praveen Reddy, 'chief medical officer' of the Netra Kumbh told PTI here.

The doctor said the voluntary work of 'Saksham' is in line with a Sanskrit shloka that vision is the prime among all the senses.

"In these over 50 days, more than 2.37 lakh tests have been done, over 1.62 lakh spectacles distributed, and more than 17,000 referrals for cataract operations done as part of the free voluntary service. We tied up with 216 hospitals across the country who in principle have agreed to offer services to these referral patients free of cost," Reddy said.

Patients from various parts of the country, pilgrims and others, visited the eye camp. Reddy claimed that several foreign visitors also visited Netra Kumbh.

Several doctors from many prominent medical institutions and clinics from Chennai, Delhi, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh volunteered to offer services at the camp, he said.

The 'CMO' of the camp highlighted that a spectacle-making unit was set up as part of the camp, and glasses have been issued to patients having very high power in their lenses too, like minus 25.

"We can handle 5,000-10,000 patients in a day, and the maximum footfall was on February 25 when about 7,800 people visited and 6,304 spectacles were issued," he said.

Some experts had raised concerns over the fitness of river water for bathing, while the Uttar Pradesh chief minister maintained that the state government had made all necessary arrangements.

The theme of the Maha Kumbh 2025 was 'Bhavya Divya Surakshit Maha Kumbh'.

A managerial staff, when asked if there were patients who had visited the camp after complaining about complications in eyes after bathing in the river, said, "Yes, there were some patients who had such complications, but we took care of them".