srjmsSRJMSSRJMS2788-948310.47310/srjms.2025.v05i01.002Seeing the Colors of Awareness': A Knowledge Assessment of Color Blindness in Everyday LifeBackground: Color blindness, or Color Vision Deficiency (CVD), is a common yet underrecognized visual impairment that impacts individuals’ ability to perceive certain colors accurately. While most cases are inherited and permanent, lack of awareness and screening-especially in resource-limited settings like rural India-often delays detection. This unawareness can affect academic performance, career choices and everyday activities that rely on color discrimination. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between January and March 2025 to assess public knowledge and awareness of color blindness among 400 adult residents of Himachal Pradesh, India. A structured, self-administered questionnaire-developed in Hindi and English and validated through expert input-was distributed online using purposive and convenience sampling. The questionnaire covered socio-demographic details, awareness of causes, symptoms, diagnosis and functional challenges of CVD. Data were analyzed using SPSS Version 26.0, with descriptive statistics and chi-square tests applied to determine associations between demographic variables and awareness levels (p<0.05 considered significant). Results: The study achieved gender balance (50.8% male, 49.3% female) with a majority aged 26-45 years and 59% residing in rural areas. Overall, 81.5% of participants correctly identified color blindness and 70.8% recognized its genetic basis. Awareness of diagnostic tools like the Ishihara test (72.0%) and functional challenges (62.3%) was moderate. Only 63.5% knew red-green deficiency was the most common type. Knowledge scores revealed that 39.5% had “Very Good” knowledge (>80% correct answers), 38% had “Good” knowledge, while 22.6% demonstrated only “Fair” or “Poor” understanding-predominantly among rural and less-educated individuals. Conclusion: While general awareness of color blindness in Himachal Pradesh is promising, significant gaps remain in   recognizing   symptoms,  functional  limitations  and  the  broader implications of CVD. There is an urgent need for culturally relevant public health initiatives, school-based vision screening programs and targeted educational outreach, especially in rural and underserved communities, to ensure early identification and informed decision-making.