At the 31^st Annual Meeting of ARVO-INDIA, a forum where eye researchers from across the country gather to present research and share expertise held at Sankara Nethralaya in Chennai, a swatch of time was taken to recall memories of, and honour the legacy of a visionary in the field of ophthalmology, P. Namperumalsamy.

‘Dr. Nam’, as he was fondly known, was chairman-emeritus of Madurai-based Aravind Eye Hospital. He died on Thursday (July 25, 2025) at the age of 85.

Recalling memories, T. Surendran, chairman, Sankara Nethralaya, spoke of his first meetings with Dr. Nam at workshops at Aravind Eye Hospital and of his simple, unassuming personality. “His association with Sankara Nethralaya dates back to its inception,” he said and added that they hoped to ensure his legacy endured.

Gullapalli N. Rao, founder, L.V. Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad, said that he had known Dr. Nam for nearly 60 years, and his wife G. Nachiar, for even longer. Recalling him as a simple, humble, and informal person, Dr. Rao said that he had learnt a lot from Dr. Nam’s experiences. “His contribution [to Aravind Eye Hospital] was the creation of strong sub-specialities and training programmes. He also created the research centre,” Dr. Rao said, adding that Dr. Nam had fought with the management to keep research funded and had constantly advocated for research.

The two doctors then signed a condolence card, and all delegates at the conference who wished to sign it were asked to do so, with the card to be sent to Aravind Eye Hospital subsequently, organisers of the event said.