Updated on: Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today launched the distribution of free spectacles to 5186 school children at a cost of Rs 20 lakh.
After the state government launched the ''School Children eye-sight protection scheme'', sixth, seventh and eighth standard students of Corporation and Government Schools in the city were screened for defects in eye sight.
Accordingly, about 1.4 lakh students were screened and it was found that 9,500 of them had defects in their eye sights.
The Chennai Corporation is helping out these students to protect their eye sights and improve in their studies. In the first phase, the Corporation decided to distribute spectacles to 5,186 students, free of cost.
The Chief Minister launched the scheme, by distributing free spectacles to 20 students at the Secretariat, an official release here said.
Earlier, Mr Karunanidhi handed over to Chennai Corporation Mayor M Subramanian, the key of a specially designed Bus, donated for the benefit of muscular dystrophy affected children.
The Rs 17 lakh bus was donated by ''Thai Navaneetham Kuppusamy Trust'' and ''Sri Jaya Education Trust'', headed by DMK leader Mr K K Selvam, the release added.