Tamil Nadu Timeline

HealthRise of Dravidian rule

Kannoli Thittam free eye surgeries

· Chennai

Kannoli Thittam free eye surgeries
Government of Tamil Nadu, GODL-India · Wikimedia Commons

The Karunanidhi government provided free eye surgeries for the blind under the Kannoli Thittam during its 1969-76 tenure.

During M. Karunanidhi's first tenure as Chief Minister (1969-76), the state government ran the Kannoli Thittam, which gave free eye surgeries to blind people. The scheme is usually described as a programme of free eye camps and cataract operations for the poor. The same government also introduced Manu Needhi Thittam, under which district officials set aside a day each week to hear public grievances. The exact launch year of the eye scheme is not given in the available sources.

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