November 02, 2009 13:00 ET

Sankara Eye Foundation Punjab Hospital -- Achievement of a Significant Milestone

Land Acquired for Punjab's First FREE Specialty Eye Hospital

MILPITAS, CA--(Marketwire - November 2, 2009) - Focus Punjab project in SEF reached an important milestone towards its goal of building Punjab's first free eye care specialty hospital. Two acres of land on the well connected Ferozpur Road, Ludhiana, has been earmarked for Sankara Eye Foundation and a 90 year lease agreement signed.

Sankara team is grateful for this noble gesture from the Govt. of Punjab, Vipul Builders and Mr. Jessie Singh of San Jose, CA. The hospital is to be built at a cost of $3 million (budgeted), and is expected to start the operations within 2 years. SEF will soon start the hiring of Para-medical staff from Punjab, to undergo training for 18 months in one of our other 8 hospitals.

Focus Punjab fundraising for hospital construction kick started at the hugely popular SEF Dandia in the Bay area, which raised around $50K. Ardent patrons like Mr. Anil Lal have not only committed to raising $100K for the Punjab hospital and become a 'Partner in Service,' but have also come forward to spend their time and energy to be part of the project steering committee. Mr. Jessie Singh, instrumental in making the hospital land acquisition possible, Mr. Jayaram Komati who championed the Guntur Eye hospital -- the first of SEF's eight fully functional free eye hospitals in India, and the FIA organization are stepping forward to help with fundraising efforts.

We invite you to be part of laying the foundation work for this hospital. SEF has organized an elegant Foundation Banquet Gala on November 14th, 2009 at the magnificent Canyon View Dining in San Ramon. Please grace us with your presence and enjoy an enchanting evening at the banquet.

With the help of the Punjabi and the broader of Indian Diaspora in USA, UK, Canada and all over the world, we look forward to completing the SEF Punjab Hospital well ahead of the scheduled opening in mid 2011. We would also like to invite you to be part of the Focus Punjab group of SEF USA and make a difference in this fantastic project.

For more details on the banquet, please contact the Focus Punjab team at banquet@giftovision.org or visit www.giftofvision.org