On the lines of National Rural Health Mission, the National Urban Health Mission will be launched in 429 towns, having over one lakh population, within four months, Union Health Minister Dr Anbumani Ramadoss has said. Inaugurating Dr Agarwal's Eye Hospital here today, he said the new project would improve all government hospitals (GH) and give free insurance coverage to 5.5 crore slumdwellers, out of a 22crore population, to get relief in both GHs and private hospitals. Assuring help to hi-tech hospitals like Dr Agarwal's Hospital to set up its units in rural areas, he said that under the National Blindness Control Project 30 years ago, a target was set to reduce the people having cataract to 0.8 percent of population. The present percentage is 0.9 percent. The WHO and the Centre envisaged Vision 2020 to reduce the percentage to 0.3 before 2020 and steps were taken to achieve the goal by 2015. Last year, 54 lakh free cataract surgeries were done in the country, which is a world record. Dr Amar Agarwal, joint managing director of the hospital said that Dr Agarwal's Hospital had over 25 branches in the country and planned to increase its strength to 100 before 2010. Hospital director Athya Agarwal, PMK president GK Mani, MLA KV Ramanathan also spoke. CANCER CONTROL: Later, the Minister laid the foundation stone for a new building at Imayam terminally ill cancer patients home, Nasiyanur. He said funds for the National Cancer Control Project has been hiked from Rs 270 crore in the 10th five year plan to Rs 2500 crore in the 11th five year plan.