India has over 15,000 organ donors annually

New Delhi: “There cannot be a greater service to humanity than giving life to another person,” stated by Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare during his address at the 13th Indian Organ Donation Day (IODD) ceremony.

Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar and Prof S P Singh Baghel, Union Ministers of State for Health and Family Welfare and Shri Ma Subramanian, Minister of Health, Tamil Nadu were also present. The 13th IODD ceremony was held to felicitate deceased donor families for their brave decision of donating organs of their loved ones, to spread awareness on deceased organ donation and to recognize the contribution of medical professionals working in the field of organ donation and transplantation by awarding them.

Addressing the gathering, Dr Mandaviya stated that it is important to recognize and appreciate the contribution of all the people who have been a part of this endeavour. The Union Minister highlighted that “in 2013, around 5000 people came forward to donate their organs. Now there are over 15,000 organ donors annually”.

The Union Minister informed that the Union Govt has taken several steps towards increasing organ donations in the country. He said that leave duration for organ donors have been increased from 30 days to 60 days, age limitations of 65 years have been removed and the process of organ donation has been further streamlined. He further stated that the Govt is committed to bring in more policies and reforms to popularise organ donation in the country.

Appreciating the contribution of organ donors, their family members and members from the civil society, Dr Mandaviya applauded their motivation and dedication. In this context, the Minister also urged the organ recipients to promote this noble service and encourage others to also donate their organs for the service of mankind.

An e-News Letter of National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO); Transplant Manual and National Curriculum for Transplant Coordinator Course were released on the occasion. During the event, ‘Make in India’ Products like Novel Hemophilia A Rapid Card Test and Von Willebrand Disease Rapid Card Test’ of ICMR and an eCARe portal (e-clearance of afterlife remains) of International Health division of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare were also launched by the Union Health Minister.

eCARe Portal: When a person passes away in other country, it leads to lot of paperwork and processes to bring the mortal remains of the deceased back to India which leaves the family and friends in dismay. Understanding the sensitivity of this issue and following the principle of minimum government and maximum governance, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India launched the eCARe (e-clearance of afterlife remains) portal to streamline and expedite the process of transporting human remains to India from different countries.

Haemophilia A and von Willebrand Disease Diagnostic Kits: Haemophilia A and von Willebrand Disease are the two most common lifelong inherited bleeding disorders. The common clinical manifestations include bleeding into the joints causing swelling and pain, bleeding into the skin (bruising) or muscle and soft tissue bleeding. ICMR-National Institute of Immunohematology (ICMR-NIIH), Mumbai has developed for the first time in the world; a Kit for diagnosis of Haemophilia A and von Willebrand Disease. The present kit is likely to change the diagnostic landscape of bleeding disorders not only in our country but in several other developing countries where diagnostic facilities are either lacking or not up to the acceptable standards.

The union health minister also felicitated donor families, transplant professionals, transplant coordinators, athletes of World Transplant Games and teams from MyGov, MoCA (Ministry of Civil Aviation), Delhi Police and Indigo Airlines during the occasion.