Hyderabad and New Delhi, September 21, 2024……Dr. Santosh G. Honavar, the Honorary Secretary of the All India Ophthalmological Society (AIOS), Director of Ophthalmic Plastic Surgery and Ocular Oncology at the Centre for Sight Eye Hospital, Hyderabad, former Associate Director of LV Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, and the past Editor of the Indian Journal of Ophthalmology, has yet again claimed the top spot among researchers in Ophthalmology in India for the fourth consecutive year. The rankings for the year 2024 were announced by a panel of experts from Stanford University and Elsevier, featuring the top 2% of researchers globally, based on the impact of their work in 2023.

Dr. Honavar is an internationally renowned ophthalmologist with expertise in eye cancers, and his illustrious career has earned him accolades such as the prestigious Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award from the Government of India and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He is the sole ophthalmologist from the Indian subcontinent to receive the Honorary Fellowship, the highest honour bestowed by the Royal College of Ophthalmologists in the UK. Dr. Santosh G. Honavar also holds the second position in the Stanford List based on his lifelong contributions to the field. He has over 15000 citations and a high H-index of 66.

Heading the list of researchers in ophthalmology in India for career-long impact is Dr. Gullapalli N. Rao, the Founder-Chairman of LV Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad. Dr. Rao, a highly esteemed ophthalmologist in India, has been honoured with the Padma Shri for his outstanding achievements. Additionally, he has served as the former Secretary-General and Chair of the Board of the International Agency for Prevention of Blindness, playing a pivotal role in the global initiative to eliminate avoidable blindness. Dr. Rao has also been inducted into the Ophthalmology Hall of Fame by the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.

Dr. Samar Basak the President of AIOS, extended his congratulations to the Indian researchers featured in the Stanford list. He highlighted AIOS’s commitment to promoting Indian research through its Journals, scientific activities, and research as part of the Vision 2030 strategy, which aims to support and nurture the research potential of Indian ophthalmologists. He expressed optimism about witnessing more young Indian ophthalmologists soon making their mark on the Stanford list.

Fifty-five Indian ophthalmologists are on the list of top 2% of world researchers, considering the impact of their work in 2023. There are 27 Indian Ophthalmologists who are part of the list of the top 2% of researchers in the world in terms of career-long impact.

The top 10 Indian researchers in ophthalmology included in the 2024 Stanford list are 1. Santosh G. Honavar, 2. Mohammad Javed Ali, 3. GVS Murthy, 4. Muthiah K. Srinivasan, 5. Swathi Kaliki, 6. Namrata Sharma 7. Virender S. Sangwan, 8. Savitri Sharma, 9. Philip Aloysius Thomas and 10. Vinod Kumar

The top 10 in the Stanford 2023 list for career-long impact are 1. Gullapalli N. Rao, 2. Santosh G. Honavar, 3. Philip Aloysius Thomas, 4. Virender S. Sangwan, 5. Savitri Sharma, 6. Muthiah K. Srinivasan, 7. D. Balasubramanian, 8. Amod Gupta, 9. GVS Murthy, and 10. Prashant Garg