Every year on 27th November, National Organ Donation Day is celebrated in India. For the past 10 years this day has been observed.
Objective of this day
The main goal of National Organ Donation Day is to raise people’s awareness, appreciate their selfless commitment to humanity, and restore their faith in humanity. The organ donation day was celebrated for the first time in the year 2010. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare organizes this day through the National Organ Tissue Transplant Organization.
Organ donation in India
In India, organ donations have always been small. Organ donation per million people in the country is estimated to be only 0.65. However, there are 35 organ donations in Spain and 26 organ donations in the United States. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of organ donations is declining sharply not only in India but around the world.
A study published in the journal The Lancet found that organ donations were reduced by more than 50% in countries with high infection rates. There was a 70 percent reduction during the national lockdown imposed in the month of March.
Only 3% of registered organ donors are in India. Even before the pandemic, there weren’t that big organ donations in India. According to 2019 data from the All Institute of Medical Sciences, 1,50,000 to 2,00,000 people need a kidney transplant each year. But since it’s only around 8000, 4% of people get it. Similarly, about 80,000 patients need a liver transplant each year, but ultimately only 1,800 will receive a liver transplant.
Approximately 1,00,000 patients require a corneal or eye transplant each year, but less than half get them. Even with a heart transplant, only 200 of the 10,000 people who need a heart transplant have a donor. The main reason for this lower organ donation is the lack of people’s knowledge of the organ transplant process. NGOs and public institutions are trying to spread awareness regarding organ donations in the country.