Still dressed in his hospital scrubs, Dr J S Titiyal, in a video, is seen walking past a sea of colleagues at AIIMS Delhi who applaud and hug him. Overcome with emotion, he tries to smile but breaks down in tears. After conducting around 50 surgeries, the renowned ophthalmologist hung up his boots on December 30 after 46 long years of service.
Following his farewell, the Padma Shri awardee said: “The operation theatre was one of the most important work areas for me, and thinking of leaving the institute made me emotional.”
Starting off as a student at AIIMS to heading the Rajendra Prasad (RP) Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences, Dr Titiyal’s career at the institute has been an exemplary one: Among his many achievements, he is an expert in cataract surgery and corneal diseases and mentored over 1,000 UG and PG students.
Dr Namrata Sharma, Professor of Ophthalmology, said Dr Titiyal’s contributions to patient care, teaching, and research in ophthalmology have had a far-reaching impact. She also said he left an indelible mark and his leadership qualities were exemplary.
It was in 1978 that Prof Titiyal joined AIIMS as an MBBS student. He became a faculty member at the RP Centre in 1991 and was appointed professor in 2005. From 2005-2011, he headed the Cornea, Cataract, and Refractive Surgery Services. He headed it again from 2013 onwards. In 2021, he was appointed Chief of R P Centre, overseeing significant clinical and infrastructural advancements.
In 2014, the Centre awarded him the Padma Shri for his services to the field of medicine.
He was the first to perform INTACS, a surgical procedure for complex corneal problems including myopia. Dr Titiyal was also instrumental in establishing the National Ophthalmic Surgical Skill Development Centre (NOSSDC) in RPC which transformed resident training in surgical skills and set the benchmark for the entire country.
According to Dr Manpreet Kaur, Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology, AIIMS Delhi, he has mentored over 1,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students, many of whom have gone on to become leaders in the field.
“Dr Titiyal made significant contributions to training ophthalmic teachers by organising and conducting workshops aimed at improving the quality of ophthalmic education in India. His expertise in cataract surgery, corneal diseases, and refractive surgery has been transformative, and his pioneering research in these fields has greatly advanced patient care,” she said.
Further, Dr Tityal helmed national surveys in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), WHO, and Vision 2020 India, including the National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey and the National Trachoma Prevalence Survey.
In addition to his academic and clinical work, Dr Titiyal has also been deeply involved in community outreach, conducting numerous national eye camps in remote and underserved areas including the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Ladakh, Jharkhand, and Uttarakhand.
He was the first Indian to perform a live surgery on an international platform in the annual meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS), USA.
In addition to his work at AIIMS, he has been actively involved in the All India Ophthalmological Society (AIOS), currently serving as the Vice President, and is poised to take over as President in 2026.
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