Dr. GVS Murthy is Vice President (Southern Region), Public Health Foundation of India and Director, Indian Institute of Public Health, Hyderabad, India. He is also a Professor of Public Health Eye Care & Disability at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK. Over the past 35 years he has contributed extensively to research, policy formualation and program implementation in public health, epidemiology, public health eye care and public health disability. He was instrumental in developing the first ever Department of Public Health Ophthalmology in India in 1992 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India. His work revolves around improving global health and fostering international partnerships to improve health of populations. He has contributed extensively to assessing the magnitude of blindness and disability in many countries including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. He was involved in conceptualizing, implemeting and interpreting data from large-scale population-based surveys in these countries. In 2010, he facilitated the establishment of the South Asia Centre for Disability Inclusive Development & Research as a collaborative Centre of Excellence between LSHTM and PHFI.
He graduated from Guntur Medical College, India in 1979 and later did his MD in Preventive & Social Medicine in 1985 from AIIMS, New Delhi, India and MSc in Community Eye Health from UCL, London in 1996. He has published 350 papers including 250 in peer reviewed indexed journals. He has contributed chapters to 28 books/ monographs. He has been the PI/ Co-PI of 58 research and program grants in the past 25 years. He has supervised 11 PhD/ DrPH, 12 MD and 17 MSc/MPH students. He is a member of the editorial board of 4 journals. He is also the Technical Advisor to CBM India & Scientific Advisor, Mission for Vision. He has served on a number of WHO, ICMR and deemed University Advisory Boards. He has been the recipient of many awards including the Indian Council for Medical Research’s BC Shrivatava Foundation Award, National Society of Prevention of Blindness Award or outstanding contributions to Community Eye Care in India, the Dr. G.Venkataswamy Memorial Award by the Community Ophthalmology Society of India, the Rustam Ranji Oration & Award by the Rotary Club of Hyderabad and the Bijayananda Patnaik Memorial Lecture by LVPEI, Bhubaneshwar, India. He has also delivered the Guntur Medical College Diamond Jubilee Alumni Oration, the AIIMS Golden Jubilee celebrations public health lecture, the Global Medical Research Foundation Day Oration, Royal Society of Medicine,
