Mumbai: People donate 1,200 bottles of blood after an acute shortage

Vidya Khakkar with her daughter, Kiara

As NGOs, politicians across party lines and public personalities urged citizens to donate blood amid an acute blood shortage, hordes of people arrived at donation camps in Vasai on Sunday. Over 2,000 people visited the camps and 1,200 bottles of blood were collected.

Another woman at Gurudwara Shree Guru Singh Sabha on Sunday. Pics/Hanif Patel

mid-day had reported about the blood shortage in Mumbai and its nearby cities amid the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on medical emergencies. A group of NGOs led by Fazle Haque Qureshi, president, Samadhan Foundation has been spreading awareness about blood donation. Qureshi said, "With blood banks in Mumbai, Palghar and Thane running dry, we decided to organise donation camps at different locations in Vasai. The response was impressive."

Twenty donation camps were organised at strategic locations on Sunday. "The camps were held at religious places including temples, mosques, gurudwaras and churches. We collaborated with various blood banks including Indian Red Cross Society, Vijay Blood Bank, Sarla Blood Bank, Maharashtra Blood Bank and Sathiya Blood Bank," Qureshi added.

"The collection of 1,200 bottles in a single day is a record. Each donor was issued a card by the Indian Red Cross Society. The card can be used to procure one bottle (350 ml) of any blood group in future. Other blood banks assured that people would get the benefit," said Qureshi. He also thanked Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation chief D Gangatharan, who appealed to civic officials to donated blood.

A medical social worker from Indian Red Cross Society, Blood Centre, Fort, Sushil Kumar said, "A large number of people turned up. They had to wait in queues to donate."

Meet the donors

Around 30 firefighters along with police personnel, advocates, builders, businessmen, students, the elderly, women, bankers, former defence personnel and others joined
the drive.

A woman donated blood as her 20-month old daughter sat on her lap. "I am a regular donor. I got to know about the camp through social media and walked in to donate. My daughter, Kiara, is too young so I brought her with me," said Vidya Khakkar, who works in a finance company in Andheri.

"Everybody must come forward and donate blood. The blood is recovered in a few hours if your diet is balanced. Donating blood keeps people healthy," said Prabhakar Kudalkar, a journalist who works with a news channel.

Student Rujuta Malkar, 22, said, "This is my first time donating blood and I am excited." Another student, Atharva Avinash Kuse, 18, said, "My grandfather was in need of blood and we had to contact several people to get it for him as his haemoglobin became alarmingly low recently. I have vowed to donate blood at regular intervals. This is my first time."

Kawaljit Singh Sethi, a committee member of Gurudwara Shree Guru Singh Sabha, Vasai, said, "We had been organising langars during the lockdown. When the NGOs approached us to use the gurudwara premises for a blood donation camp, we immediately agreed."

Dimple Singh's 18-year-old daughter suffers from Thalassaemia and often needs blood. Singh volunteers for Red Cross and her husband donated blood on Sunday. "I am very thankful to people who came forward to donate blood. Such camps will really be helpful for patients of Thalassaemia and other diseases," said Singh.

30
Approx. no. of firefighters who donated blood

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