Pak’s First Woman Ophthalmologist Dr Pramila Lall Dies at 93

News Desk

Wah Cantt: Dr Pramila Lall, Pakistan’s first female ophthalmologist and one of the country’s most respected medical pioneers, passed away peacefully on Saturday at the age of 93, officials at Christian Hospital, Taxila, confirmed.

Her passing marks the end of an extraordinary chapter in Pakistan’s medical history. Over a career spanning nearly seven decades, Dr Lall devoted her life to restoring vision and providing compassionate, affordable eye care, particularly to underprivileged citizens.

Dr Lall served Christian Hospital, Taxila, for more than 50 years and remained associated with the institution for almost 69 years. During this time, she is credited with restoring sight to over 600,000 patients and delivering eye care services to millions.

Revered for her exceptional surgical skills and tireless commitment, she is widely believed to have performed the highest number of eye surgeries by a woman ophthalmologist in Asia.

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Born in 1932 in Nagpur, India, Dr Lall graduated from Christian Medical College, Vellore, in 1957. She moved to Pakistan the same year after marrying Dr Ernest Lall and soon dedicated herself to serving communities with limited access to healthcare. In 1964, she earned a Diploma in Ophthalmology from London, becoming Pakistan’s first woman specialist in the field.

In recognition of her lifelong services to eye care and blindness prevention, the government of Pakistan awarded her the Tamgha-i-Imtiaz in 2002. Colleagues and patients alike remember her not only as a pioneering doctor but also as a deeply humane and selfless individual whose work transformed countless lives.

Dr Pramila Lall breathed her last at Christian Hospital, the institution that became her lifelong home and mission. She will be laid to rest at the hospital premises beside her late husband, following the arrival of her children from abroad.

She leaves behind an enduring legacy of service, compassion, and excellence that will continue to inspire generations of medical professionals and remain etched in the lives of those whose vision — and hope — she restored.