Alo Newsletter (2)

SPOTLIGHT

THE OFFICIAL
MAGAZINE OF THE

ALUMNI OF L V
PRASAD EYE
INSTITUTE

OPTOMETRISTS

MARCH, 2021,

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Greetings from ALO! "Its
I am profoundly honored by the opportunity to serve as the never
President of our Alumni Association for the next three years. about
I greet you for the first time as the Alumni Board President,
there are a million things going through my head, like ‘What the
impact and legacy do the current general body want to leave ROLE,
on ALO?’, ‘How will I establish plans to drive a greater
engagement from the alumni to build larger circles and a Its
community of tighter connections?’ etc. always
However, with a willingness to achieve the greater good, my about
new team and I plan to move forward with great initiatives.
The best way to lead a successful Alumni Association is to the
engage every alumnus. We would love to welcome and attract GOAL"
you with all the great events and experiences so that you
reminisce, cherish your time as a student and engage in
networking with fellow students and faculty. We need your
guidance to be successful. We need you to preserve the pride
that dwells deep in your heart. We need you as an epitome of
success to the upcoming generations, for our new alumni,
and to enlighten future explorers to reach their destination.
I thank the founding members and congratulate previous
governing bodies and executive committee for the great
initiatives and for commendable work that they have done in
the past years. The best way to stay connected is to be
informed of all the alumni events at ALO through the website
and through social media. Follow ALO Alumni on the major
platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Alumni Website)
or stay connected through me or any other Board Members.
We promise to promote your successes and ensure you are
aware of and included in all ALO events. Moreover, we
welcome your feedback and guidance as we plan our
engagement strategy for the years ahead.
Thank you in advance for your support as we build Bigger
Groups,
Tighter Connections, and Greater Engagement.

THE PREVIOUS GOVERNING BODY

Dr Pavan Verkicharla is a Scientist researching on both basic and
translational aspects of myopia at the L V Prasad Eye Institute,
Hyderabad - India. Pavan pursued PHD from the Queensland
University of Technology - Australia and post-doctoral research from
Singapore Eye Research Institute - Singapore. Overall, he has over 27
publications in international journals and currently holds research
grants from Government of India (Department of Science and
Technology, and Science and Engineering Board) that supports
research related to understanding various aspects of myopia in a
holistic approach. Apart from research, Dr Verkicharla - as an
Optometrist also examines children in the 'myopia control clinic' at
LVPEI.

Dr Ritika Kataria completed her primary and secondary schooling at
Bombay Scottish school and Jai Hind College in Mumbai. She moved to
Hyderabad to complete a bachelor of science in Optometry from
Bausch and Lomb School of Optometry at L. V. Prasad Eye Institute
where she graduated in 2010 as the ‘Best outgoing Student’. She then
moved to Melbourne to complete the Doctor of Optometry program at
the University of Melbourne and graduated in 2014.In 2015 she was
awarded the Best Graduate award by the Australian college of
Optometry.

Mr Vijay Kumar Yelagondula completed his Diploma in
Ophthalmic Techniques in 2001, followed by a one year
fellowship in clinical optometry at L V Prasad Eye Institute
(LVPEI) in 2002. He later obtained his Bachelor degree in Clinical
Optometry from Bharati Vidyapeeth University, Pune. After his
graduation he joined at Bausch & Lomb School of Optometry
(BLSO), LVPEI in the capacity of teaching faculty. In 2009, he
pursued his Master of Health Services Management (MHSerMgt)
from Griffith University, Australia. He joined back at BLSO in
2010 and since then he is continuing in the capacity of Registrar.
He continues to teach undergraduate, diploma and vision
technician programs at BLSO.

Optom Yogesh Picha is a qualified optometrist proficient in clinical
skills and decision making. He has completed Diploma in Optometry
in 1996 followed by two years of clinical Optometry fellowship at the
prestigious LVPEI in 1998. He achieved FIACLE status in the year
2000 and was one of the first few educators from India to achieve it
He is a passionate teacher with over 5 years of experience in
teaching Optometry subjects. He is an entrepreneur with over 15
years of experience in managing private practice. He played a major
role in initiating the discussions to form ALO.

MEET OUR FANTASTIC FOUR!

Mr. Lalith Kumar Reddy completed his
graduation from Bausch & Lomb School of
optometry in the year 2018. He worked with
SRUJANA INNOVATION CENTER in developing
devices mainly for infants named Pediatric
perimeter. He is currently working for Johnson &
Johnson Vision as Regional Training Specialist.

Mir Amir Ali has completed his B.Sc. Optometry
from Bausch & Lomb School of Optometry in 2018
and is currently pursuing Post Graduation Diploma
in Optometry and Vision Sciences from LVPEI in
Innovation and Technology development.

Mr. Hareesh earned his bachelor’s degree in
Optometry from Bausch and Lomb School of
Optometry in the year 2018 and since then, has been
working as a Professional services Executive at
Bausch+Lomb Vision Care, India.

Chaitanya earned his Bachelors in Optometry from
Bausch & Lomb School of Optometry (BITS, Pilani), L
V Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI), India. He continued to
work at LVPEI as a consultant & research optometrist
for a year and is specialized in Paediatric Optometry.
Currently, he is working as a consultant optometrist
in Lusaka, Zambia.

THROWBACK OF SEVENTH
ALO VIRTUAL MEET

The 2021 7th ALO Annual meet was held on January 3, 2021. The premier
highlight of the conference was to introduce new president, board
members, and executive members of the ALO and the announcement of the
Alumni of the Year. On account of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's
annual meet was organised on a virtual platform. Nonetheless, the event
brought most of our alumni and attracted more than 100 participants to a
single platform.

This time our annual meet also included several ice breakers like live quiz,
talent hunt, fun games, memory lane of our alumni, etc., which were able to
captivate both students and clinicians during the meet. The optometry
related sessions of the 7th ALO meet were focused on currents hot topics
on understanding and tackling COVID-19, low vision, contact lens,
orthoptics and vision therapy, ophthalmic dispensing, and a panel
discussion on optometric practice during COVID Era.

One of the most successful sessions at the 7th ALO meet was the presence
of Dr. Pravin Krishana Vaddavalli - Director, The Cornea Institute, Head,
Refractive Surgery, Cataract and Contact Lens Services, in LVPEI,
Hyderabad. He delivered the talk, entitled “Continuing Engagement with
LVPEI”. The zenith during his talk was the discussion on the evolution of
Teleophthalmology services in LVPEI and different innovations from
Srujana Innovation Center, LVPEI.

Opening the conference, Dr Pavan K. Verkicharla addressed the attendees
on ALO-updates with his talk on “Welcome address - Update about ALO”
where he highlighted the past works of our old governing body, and also
shed light on the future goals and strategies of ALO. Dr Nagraju Konda’s
speech garnered special attention by his talk on COVID-19, entitled
”Understanding and Tackling COVID-19”.

For the panel discussion on “Optometry practice during COVID-Era”
several renowned optometrist join who are independently running their
optometric practice in different parts of India. The primary focus for this
panel discussion was to bring forward the challenges and hurdles the
optometric field faced during the lockdown-hard time of the virus
pandemic.

At the end of conference, the alumni of the year 2021 were presented to Mr.
Yeshwant Saoji and Mr. Nagesh Vuppala for their immense contributions in
the field of Optometry and Vision Science. Lastly, Dr Pavan K. Verkicharla
aka. our ex-president and Mr. Vijay K. Yelagondula aka our ex-treasurer
conveyed their gratitude to all participants, attendees, speakers, and
panelist. They extended their thanks to all the alumni who attended the
annual meet.

ANNUAL BUSINESS MEET

Every year before the main conference, our task force, aka. our governing
body with all the executive board members and life-time members of the
ALO meet annually to discuss on the strategy, feedback, past works, future
works to shape the work of ALO as an non-profit organization. For the first
time this year, our previous task force, especially Dr. Vinod Kumar
Maseedupally has recognized that empowering the women’s role and
employing their leadership quality in every aspect of ALO’s work will be the
catalyst to the development of ALO.

ALUMNI OF THE YEAR 2021

The speciality of ALO conferences is to always uplift the profession and members who promote
optometry to the next level in the country and inspire individuals to perform great achievements
The alumnus of the year award is given to one/two optometrists from the ALO fraternity to
recognise the work done by them over the years in order to help Optometry grow and be role
models for the upcoming generations. This year the award was given to Mr.Yeshwanth Saoji and Mr
Nagesh Vuppala for their immense contribution for the many years they have been in the industry
in the field of clinical optometry.

YESHWANT SAOJI is a Senior ·Nagesh Vuppala completed his Master of
Optometry from Bharati Vidyapeeth
Optometrist from Nagpur who University School of Optometry, Pune. He
specializes in Low vision and Keratoconus
specializes in the field of Contact Contact Lens management. He is one of
the leading Low Vision practitioner in
lenses and in practice for 26 years. India. He conducts training and mentors
students on Low Vision and Contact
He is holding a Master’s degree in Lenses research. He has been the invited
guest, speaker, faculty for various
Optometry from the School Of institutes and industries across Asia
Pacific region. Prior to joining NeoRetina,
Optometry, Bharati Vidyapeeth He worked as Senior Optometrist at the
world renowned L.V.Prasad Eye Institute,
University, Pune. A Graduate of Hyderabad.

the Elite School of Optometry

(1991), Sankara Nethralaya,

Chennai, he is also a Fellow of the

L.V.Prasad Eye Institute (1992),

Hyderabad.

GLIMPSE OF SEVENTH
ALO VIRTUAL MEET

ALO CHRONICLES

· ALO chronicle!
ALO has launched a new initiative, the “ALO Chronicles”!!! It was launched in
February 2021 and is a fortnightly publication of interesting, motivating, and
relatable journeys of our dear alumni. ALO chronicles aim to showcase the untold
tales of people who have given their contribution to the optometry community, who
are living their dreams now, and who are now striving to get to the pinnacle of their
dreams.
Chronicles showcases not only career oriented stories, but also inspiring tales about
any optometrists’ life. Be it a success story, BLSO/ LVPEI memories, memoir, love
stories, failure and achievement stories, etc.
Chronicles are not meant only for the established optometrists; Budding
optometrists, recent graduates, working optometrists, and established optometrists,
everyone can share their story with the world and pen-down their journey,
hardships, hurdles, fun moments, success stories, etc. with [email protected]
Our first chronicle was of Dr Swathi Kanduri. She is an established optometrist
working as clinical research coordinator in Auckland eye hospital, New Zealand. Dr
Swathi pens down her journey of aiming to become a PhD student, the hardships she
underwent in the process, juggling motherhood and PhD, manoeuvring through the
un-known terrain and finally succeeding to complete her PhD. Dr Swathi later went
on to work in the same place as Clinical researcher and aspires to grow higher. Find
the link below to read on Dr. Kanduri’s chronicle further!
Our second chronicle was of Mr Vinay Balla. Vinay is an optometrist and clinician
presently working at Doha, Qatar. “Optometry, photography, and charity – the story
of my life” he quotes. Photography, being one of his major passions in life, Balla pens
down his story of how photography became his interest, how it grew into a passion
in his life and how he made use of it in a beautiful way to help raise money for
charity. Find the link below to read on Vinay Balla’s chronicle further, and keep
reading further to see some beautiful captures from Vinay Balla’s lens.
A chronicle is a platform for anyone to inspire, motivate, encourage, cheer and
mesmerize the world with your stories. Want to share your story too? Write to us at
[email protected].

Want to share your journey/ experiences in your areas
too? ALO would love to hear from you! Write to us at
[email protected] get your story published and mesmerize

the world as well!

BE A LIFETIME
MEMBER OF ALO

A COOL OFFER FOR THE RECENT GRADUATING
BATCH IS THAT YOU GET A 30% DISCOUNT ON THE

MEMBERSHIP FEE!!! REGISTER NOW TO ALO AT
WWW.ALOPTOM.COM

www.aloptom.com

BE A LIFETIME
MEMBER OF ALO

NOBODY CARES ABOUT AN INSTITUTION
MORE THAN ITS ALUMNI

STAY Educate Seek
CONNECTED peers and professional
WITH ALUMNI and career
get
educated advice

AN OPPORTUNITY NO ONE CAN AFFORD TO MISS
TO KNOW MORE VISIT WWW.ALOPTOM.COM

LIFETIME MEMBER OF
ALUMNI OF L V PRASAD

EYE INSTITUTE
OPTOMETRISTS (ALO)

Nobody loves an institute more than its alumni! This is a very true
statement, especially when you spend 4 most precious years of your life in
that institute!
Alumni of L V Prasad Eye Institute Optometrists (ALO) is one institute
that gives its alumni the best of opportunities, be it a member or not.
Attending conferences, staying connected with the members, etc. ALO
also has lifetime member subscriptions which has various benefits along
with it.
Stay connected with the community, other alumni members, peers,
faculty members, etc. This allows a stronger bond among alumni. The
culture in BLSO and LVPEI has always been very strong and allows a tight
relationship between alumni, ALO gives an opportunity to work on the
same, and reach out to people for guidance, help, work, and networking.
Educating others and getting updated and educated is crucial when it
comes to professional growth. Alumni members are spread across the
globe in every walk of life, optometry, and branches of Optometry.
Seeking professional and career advice from the ones who have already
established themselves, and reaching your goals is one of the best benefits
you could ever receive from ALO. ALO members are spread across fields
like clinical and research optometry, sub speciality in optometry,
community optometry and public health, academics, and also many own
businesses. Other than optometry, members are in fields like
entrepreneurship and leadership, arts, government services, etc.
Growing in one’s professional career is very crucial. Priority in publishing
articles, bringing your work to light, and showcasing the same with the
world is of utmost importance as of now. ALO also gives you access to the
E library which will soon be available on the portal.

ALO has always been a pioneer in supporting education as much
as possible. Enabling the reach of education and updated
knowledge is one of its main priorities. To keep up the tradition,
ALO gives away research and clinical excellence awards in
occasions such as World Optometry Day, events like Converge,
etc. Making it easy and cost effective for students to pursue
their dreams, ALO also gives away travel grants for interested
candidates who are interested in attending various conferences
etc.
Being a part of a noble cause is also one of the main motives among
ALO members. As medical professionals, it is in our very core
foundation to serve the community, ‘so that all may see!’, and hence,
vision screening camps, camps to support the society, and increase
awareness and reach of optometry to a new and better level.
When it comes to business meets and annual meets, ALO has always
maintained high standards. Giving electoral rights to all the
members, giving opportunity for everyone to register with reduced
registration fee for the new graduates, etc. are a few initiates taken
in order to reduce the burden among the student population. With
ALO, one can also stay updated with recent advances and update
es in Optometry with the monthly magazine.
ALO always is looking forward to uplift the organization and
community with all best known possibilities.
“I believe your reality is what you make it, what you choose to see,
and what you choose to allow yourself to do. There are possibilities
all around you - magic all around you - no matter what situation
you're in”------ Keke Palmer

BE A LIFETIME MEMBER OF
ALO

Stay Educate Seek
connected peers and professional
and career
with get
alumni educated advice

Excellence Travel grant Business meet
award
attend and
Clinical & conference Annual meet
Research

Be a part of a golden Electoral Reduced
Nobel platform Rights Registration
cause
for Fees
professional

growth

Optometry Vision prioritiy Content Stay
awareness screening in publishing development updated

articles advances in
optometry

Support Access to Monthly
Society E library newsletter

WE
BELIEVE
THAT
EVERY
PERSON
IS BORN
WITH

TTAALLEENNTT

Got a Talent?
Want to showcase it to the world?

we will showcase it all
We are looking for new talent and flair! Do you think you have it in you?

Write to us at [email protected] (Stories: 450
words, poems: 100 words, one photo, design,
meme, etc. per entry)

TALENT HUNT!!!

Srinivas Marmamula received his initial
optometry training at L V Prasad Eye Institute
and then did his Masters in Community Eye
Health from the London School of Hygiene
and Tropical Medicine, University of London.
In 2011, he completed his PhD from the School
of Optometry and Vision Science, UNSW. Dr
Marmamula has done his post-doctoral
research fellowship during 2012-2013 at
Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins
University, Baltimore, MD, USA.

"VISION LOSS AFFECTS OVER A THIRD OF THE
ELDERLY. MOST OF THIS VISION LOSS IS
AVOIDABLE"!

TALENT HUNT!!!

Kavya Sri Vanga has completed her Bachelor's

in Optometry from Bausch and Lomb School Of

Optometry in the year 2019, she is currently

pursuing her Masters from Chitkara University.

Apart from academics her interest and hobbies

lies in dancing, drawing and macro

photography

"SHE LOVES MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY BECAUSE SHE
BELIEVES THAT EVERYTHING CANNOT BE SEEN WITH

NAKED EYE"!

TALENT HUNT!!!

Mahesh Chandra Ambadker has

completed his Bachelor's in Optometry

from Bausch and Lomb School Of

Optometry in the year 2019, He is

currently working as adjunct optometrist

at L.V.Prasad Eye Institute. Apart from

professional life Mahesh is passionate

about photography.

"HE WANTS TO EXPLORE NATURE AND CAPTURE IT
WITH HIS PHOTOGRAPHY"1

TALENT HUNT!!!

Soundariya Yadav Kundanapally has
completed her diploma in ophthalmic
techniques from Bausch and Lomb
School Of Optometry, FOOREC
university , currently she is pursuing
her bachelor's in optometry from
Bharati Vidyapeeth Medical College and
Hospital, Sangli. Apart from her
academics she is very much intrested in
writting her own thoughts as quotes.

"SHE BELIEVES THAT WRITING OUR OWN THOUGHTS
CAN IMPROVE OUR CONFIDENCE"!

TALENT HUNT!!!

Neelima Manchikanti has completed
her Bachelor's in Optometry from
Bausch and Lomb School Of
Optometry in the year 2019, she is
currently working as optometrist at
L.V.Prasad Eye Institute. She was
inspired towards photography by her
beloved friend Mahesh Chandra by
seeing his passion towards
photography.

"SHE LOVES MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY BECAUSE IT GIVES
FINE DETAILS OF NATURE AND GIVES DIFFERENT
PERSPECTIVE"1

OPPORTUNITY!!

CALL FOR PUBLISHING
CASE REPORT

CLINICAL PHOTOGRAPHS

Getting to see some interesting cases in your
clinical set-up?
Interested in photography, but working in your
clinic on the weekend?
Get your phone/ camera out and click a pic!
Write up about the case also and send it all to us
at [email protected] to showcase it
to the optometry world!

SHARE YOUR
ACHIVEMENTS

We invite submissions that focus on various
topics related to Optometry and Vision Science,
we especially welcome short articles (at least
1000 words) that reflect not only mainstream
optometry but also focus on the seldom covered
optometry topics like genetics, artificial
intelligence, machine learning, eye, and
innovation, etc.
Submit your entries at [email protected]

CALL FOR
ARTICLES...!!!

Optometry is a career field with

possibilities An optometrist can

expertise in sports vision, senior care,

vision therapy, low vision, contact

lenses, innovation, community and

public health, myopia, pediatric $

neuro- optometry, etc. the list goes on

and on.

If you are an expert in any of the
areas, send in your write-up (1000
words) about the same and we can
showcase the same to the world! send
it to us at [email protected]

PERSCEPTIVE COLUMN

My perspective on myopia: by Pavan K Verkicharla – 12-03-2021
Talking about the awesome, cute, fascinating yet frustrating myopia is always
exciting. Given that I am asked to give my perspective on myopia, I felt it is wise to
call this write-up as “MY- OPIA” and thus views here should be interpreted with
caution.
Myopia for me is an ignored area in India by parents (ignoring their child a regular
eye examination), children (ignoring to use spectacles), eye care professionals
(ignoring to practice, research and preach about myopia/anti-myopia), industries
(either ignoring Indian myopia scenario ns not getting anti-myopia strategies to us
or ignoring the poor/middle class with high costs), now the law-makers (ignoring
public health policies to counter act myopia). Should I say that the myopia is cute
and fascinating as it gives job to a few thousands of diverse professionals ranging
from optometrists, researchers, personnel in optical industry and ophthalmologists?
Or clearly it is frustrating as it is a complex ocular refractive condition with multi-
factorial aetiology with the cause for myopia still remaining unclear (even after
research for centuries). There are many unanswered questions: Why only few
children develop myopia? And of them why only some of them progress to
high/pathologic myopia? Why only few do not progress? How should we counteract
this situation? What anti-myopia strategy should be given and when/how, etc. etc.
etc.?
The combination of rapid development in digital technology and the indoor-centric
life style factors such as intense near work to strive for academic excellence and
limited time in outdoor environment may result in an epidemic of high myopia in
India similar to what happened in China or Singapore few decades ago. Therefore, it
is high time for all our optometry fraternity in India to start practicing and
preaching myopia before the prevalence of myopia in India surges to the
uncontrollable levels similar to what was seen in East Asian countries (in countries
like China, and Singapore out of 100 children, 80 to 90 of them are myopes). India is
already on the verge of seeing big jump in myopia prevalence (FYI: Our recent
prediction model indicate 1 out of 2 children (48%) to have myopia by 2050 in India)
if no anti-myopia measures are initiated soon. Our work from myopia lab at LVPEI
also showed that the pathologic complications do not just happen only in cases with
high myopia and elderly, but also with milder form and even in children. Thus care
needs to be given to all those with myopia irrespective of age or the magnitude of
myopia.

While Professor Brien Holden in his write-up about myopia (2015) indicated
that “it is time to act now” and optometrists should be in the frontline to
combat this myopia battle.
I would like to re-word that to say “If not now, when?”
As an optometrist, it is absolutely our responsibility to tackle this awesome,
cute yet frustrating myopia. Note that myopia is more than “the parallel rays
focussing Myopia or short-sightedness is that type of refractive error where
parallel rays of light coming from infinity are focused in front of retina with
relaxed ocular accommodation (or at rest) and is beyond the routinely
performed on-axis refraction”. Given the growing evidence and availability of
anti-myopia strategies, one has to recognize that prescribing single vision
lenses to a child with myopia progression is nothing less than a SIN.
Goal of any anti-myopia strategy (in form of optical,
environmental/behavioural, and pharmacological) should not be just to stop
the progression, but to target 1) myopia prevention (think of children with
emmetropes, but with other risk factors like parental myopia), 2) delay the
onset of myopia (so that they may not develop high myopia in adulthood) and
3) to slow the progression of myopia (irrespective of age). Well, saying all that,
I do understand that majority of the anti-myopia lenses are not manufactured
in India and are very expensive for the end user. Hopefully, we should have
our own Indian made lenses soon so that we can cater it to all those in need
instead of just to the ones who can afford it. But at the same time this does
not mean, we don’t provide them with anything as they cannot afford (FYI:
recommendation on increasing time in outdoors is ‘cheap’; bi-focal spectacles
are less expensive than others; and watch out for availability various cost-
effective anti-myopia lenses).
Holistic approach is the way to go if we want to really ensure that the child
should not have myopia progression. Before we jump on to anti-myopia or
blindly follow what is in the market, I always feel that we need to understand
the causation (get as much information as possible from the child /their child
hood/their activities from parents/family history/document ocular
parameters). Otherwise, we are just shooting in the dark. For the same
reason, our work in myopia research lab concentrates more on investigations
related to pathophysiology of the myopia. To give you a perspective: our
experiments in understanding near work indicated that reading on hard-copy
in equally myopiogenic and thus the blame game on just smart phones to
cause myopia may not be right.

Note the smart phones entered the market only after year 2000, but the
myopia prevalence was already at peak (80%) much before that that (by 1990).
Now clearly the recommendation to children to just read on hard-copies may
not be correct too. With the evidence piling up every day in the field of
myopia (11,000+ papers published in last decade on myopia; 342 in just 2021
already), unless we are upto speed, it will become a challenge for us to tackle
this future pandemic. Do not blindly follow one type of strategy. Understand
the mechanism for why ortho-k will be good, why centre distance multi-focal
or why bi-focal spectacle lenses or why atropine eye drops. The evidence
about the efficacy of all these strategies vary from approximately 40-70%.
Monitor all the “X” factors related to myopia (environment, central and
peripheral optics, biometry atleast) and then decide on the anti-myopia
strategy the child should get to counteract myopia progression.

The 4 M's of Myopia Mantra that I want to highlight again to all the
optometrists who want to practice myopia are (mantra already revealed in
2019 in article published in ALO):

·Multi-factorial nature of myopia
(Understand that there are many factors and holistic approach is the way to
go)
·Measure the 'X' factors related to myopia
(Whatever you can with your instruments/awesome brain)
·Monitor the progression closely
(3-6 month time will help us identify changes in axial length)
·Manage with appropriate anti-myopia strategy
(Varies case to case and providing them with nothing can be considered a sin)

Let’s be the change that we want to see in this myopia world.

Dr Pavan Verkicharla
Scientist - Myopia Research Lab
Head and Consultant Optometrist - The Myopia Centre (Prevention and
Control)
DST Inspire Faculty - India

PERSPECTIVE COLUMN

Management is broadly a perspective that comes with work experience.
Time has proven that early intervention in the process of learning &
development enhances competency to assimilate which can completely
transform an individual’s learning & development curve!

Being very driven to strategic management, I was always curious to deep dive!
This led to the investment of 2 years at a Business School very soon after my
BS in optometry.
LVPEI trained me as a very confident professional.
At the B School, I must admit that I had again started to feel minuscule. It
gave me such a broad canvas that I had difficulty in figuring out the
centration...

Back to school... For good!

While this early intervention worked for me...I would not outright advocate
the benefits of the same. It may vary significantly as you need to be crystal
clear on the purpose behind pursuing this.

Do you have a passion for management & curious to learn more
Are you ready to diversify?
Do you need a stepping stone for the next level of growth?
Are you ready for unknown challenges?
Probably then it is one of options to be considered…!

Business school education is more of an experiential & active learning
process. You need a complete reservation on time of 2 years to be able to just
get started with the journey!

All the best!
Snigdha

Assistant Director, Academy for Eye Care Education, L V Prasad Eye Institute,
(A WHO collaborating centre for prevention of blindness), Manager, Trainer,
Learner

PUBLICATIONS FROM ALO !

Verkicharla PK, Kammari P, Das AV. Myopia progression varies with age
and severity of myopia. Plos one. 2020 Nov 20;15(11):e0241759.

Dhakal R, Verkicharla PK. Increasing time in outdoor environment could
counteract the rising prevalence of myopia in Indian school-going
children. Current Science (00113891). 2020 Nov 25;119(10).

Chakraborty R, Ostrin LA, Benavente‐Perez A, Verkicharla PK. Optical
mechanisms regulating emmetropisation and refractive errors: evidence
from animal models. Clinical and Experimental Optometry. 2020
Jan;103(1):55-67.

Mandal AK, Sulthana SS, Gothwal VK. Primary Congenital Glaucoma:
Trends in Presentation Over 3 Decades at a Tertiary Eye Care Center in
India. Journal of Glaucoma. 2020 Nov 20;29(11):1095-100.

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Gothwal VK, Sharma S, Mandal AK. Beyond intraocular pressure: visual
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SuSenthil S, Deshmukh S, Turaga K, Pesala V, Bandela PK, Ganesh J,
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Naroo SA, Morgan PB, Shinde L, Ewbank A. The Impact of COVID-19 on
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Shinde L, Thite N, Naroo SA, Ewbank A. International Association of
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RIDDLES CORNER!

An old man who was born in the year 1948, quite recently
celebrated his 17th birthday

A snail is at the bottom of 30 feet wall, every our the
snail climbs up 3 feet and then slides down back by 2
feet, how many hours it takes for the snail to touch the
top?

12 match sticks are lying in front of a person, one match
stick is removed now he sees nine, how is that possible?

FACT OF THE MONTH

World's first space hotel will open in 2027.It
will cruise around the earth in 90 minutes and
will accommodate 400 people! this hotel will
also have bars, earth viewing lounges, cinema
and spa.

BRAIN TEASER!

REMEMBERING
HOSTEL DAYS!

Hostel life rocks!!!

TIME TO LAUGH!

Talking dog for sale!!

A guy spots a sign outside a house that reads “Talking
Dog for Sale.” Intrigued, he walks in.
“So what have you done with your life?” he asks the
dog.
“I’ve led a very full life,” says the dog. “I lived in the
Alps rescuing avalanche victims. Then I served my
country in Iraq. And now I spend my days reading to
the residents of a retirement home.”
The guy is flabbergasted. He asks the dog’s owner,
“Why on Earth would you want to get rid of an
incredible dog like that?”
The owner says, “Because he’s a liar! He never did any
of that!”

Stay tuned for more fun with humpty
dumpty in the upcoming magazine!!!

WORD SEARCH

DID YOU KNOW?

The animal in the firefox logo is
not actually a fox . Its a red
panda

REWIND OF WHAT
IS DONE TILL NOW

Review of Jan and Feb 2021

On 12th Jan 2021, the governing body of ALO was formed, alongside the
elected board members and a team of executive committee members as
well.
14th of Jan 2021 was the Makara Sankratnthi celebrations among ALO
platforms.
16th Jan 2021 ALO was expanding its wings and encouraging young talent
to join as call for volunteers.
On 17th Jan 2021 was ALOs first ever executive board meeting.
21st Jan 2021 ALO introduced the EC team to the community.
The 26th Jan 2021 was republic day and team ALO celebrated the same
across platforms.
31st Jan 2021 was the first sneak peek about our upcoming chronicles.
4th Feb 2021 was a trailer launch for the ALO chronicle.
7th Feb 2021 was the launch of our first ever ALO chronicle by Dr Swathi
Kanduri.
3rd Mar 2021 launch of our meme day.
4th Mar 2021 ALO grew into platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter.
7th Mar 2021 was the release of our 2nd chronicle, of Vinay Balla.
As 8th Mar 2021 was International women’s day, it was celebrated by team
ALO, celebrating this, ALO also congratulated Dr Vijaya Kumari on her
success.
On 9th Mar 2021, ALO welcomed its new editor, Sandhya Shekar on board.

More and more growth and awesomeness awaiting your way! Tune into
ALO for more!!