Gullapalli N.Rao, M.D.
Diplomate of American Board, FACS, FRCS, FNAMS, D.Sc.

Chairman, Board of Trustees & President
International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness
and
Distinguished Chair of Eye Health, L V Prasad Eye Institute

Founder Director of the LV Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI) in India. His International work and standing in the area of Prevention of Blindness is epitomised by his appointment as Secretary – General of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (1998 – 2004) and more recently as Chairman, Board of Trustees and President. He has played a key role in initiating, coordinating and mobilising Vision 2020: The Right to Sight activities, which will improve sight worldwide and provided exemplary leadership to this program.

Dr Rao’s main areas of interest are Community Eye Health, Health Policy & Planning, Health Care Reforms, Corneal Diseases and Eye Banking; his research includes models of eye care delivery, sustainability and eye banking models.

Dr Rao holds one of the Chairs of the Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis; President of the Asia Pacific Region and Member of the Board of the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (1995-present); President-Elect of the Asia Pacific Society for Cornea & Refractive Surgery, Member, International Council of Ophthalmology. He is a member of International Advisory Committee of the International Federation of Eye Banks and ORBIS International. He has received numerous awards including: Ranbaxy Research Award for contributions to medical science (1995); Outstanding Service Award of the Association of Asian Indians in Ophthalmology in the U.S. (1984); Senior Honour Award of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (1998); Honorary Doctorate of Science from University of New South Wales, Australia (2001); Padma Shri – Republic Day Civilian Award from the President of India (2002); First 'Global Visionary in Ophthalmology' Award of Bausch & Lomb (2003); “Fellow qua surgeon” of the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons, Glasgow (2003); HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Award for the Prevention of Blindness (2004); Prince Abdulaziz International Prevention of Blindness Award (2005), First “G.B. Bietti International Award for Prevention of Blindness” by the Italian Society for Prevention of Blindness (2005); First “Dr.M.C.Nahata Rashtriya Netra Suraksha Puraskar” by National Society for Prevention of Blindness, Indore (2005), International Blindness Prevention Award by the American Academy of Ophthalmology (2006); Pisart Vision Award by Lighthouse International (2007); Honorary Doctorate of Science from University of Melbourne, Australia (2007) and many more.

Published over 240 papers and on the Editorial Boards of 6 journals.