By 2035, India will have at least 50,000 trained eye care professionals, thanks to the SureStart education-to-employment programme. This initiative is a result of a collaboration between Lenskart, the eyewear brand and Virohan, a healthcare and allied education institution/platform.
This industry-integrated programme, focused on optometry, is aimed at bridging the growing gap in India’s eye care workforce and help the country deal with the dearth of primary eye care professionals. The objective is to provide industry-relevant education along with immediate employment opportunities.
The curriculum has been designed in consultation with Lenskart’s clinical and retail teams to equip students with both deep scientific knowledge as well as strong customer-facing skills. This collaboration forms part of Virohan’s larger vision to train one million skilled healthcare professionals across the country.
According to PubMed Central, India currently has only 42,000 primary eye care professionals, while the estimated requirement exceeds 1.25 lakh. Clearly, there is an urgent need for a scalable skilling solution.
The SureStart programme offers two courses: a three-year BSc in Ophthalmic Techniques and a four-year Bachelor of Optometry. Both are a blend of classroom learning with practical training, covering critical subjects such as ocular pathology, contact lenses, binocular vision and optometric procedures.
Students will benefit from paid internships across 2,000+ Lenskart stores, live demonstrations, tech-enabled learning, and one-on-one mentorship ensuring they’re prepared to meet the needs of today’s fast-evolving vision care landscape.
According to Peyush Bansal, co-founder and CEO, Lenskart, “Our mission is to make quality eye care accessible to every Indian, and skilled professionals are at the heart of this vision.”
The SureStart programme with Virohan is aimed at “shaping the future of optometry in India”. It blends “hands-on experience with guaranteed career pathways” and will build “a workforce ready to lead the next chapter of India’s eye care evolution.”
The programme will ensure that students gain exposure to real-world scenarios through guest lectures, on-ground store visits, and customised learning modules focused on the eye care sector. Graduates will also receive an Award of Excellence, further enhancing their career credentials.
“At Virohan, we believe education must lead to meaningful careers,” said Nalin Saluja, co-founder and CTO, Virohan. Therefore, SureStart is designed to do equip students with “in-demand skills, real-world experience, and direct access to job opportunities.”
Initially the programme will be launched across key Virohan campuses, but is expected to expand to more cities in the future.
