Sixty-three districts in country without blood banks: Health Minister

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There are 3,500 licensed blood banks in the country and 63 districts are without the facility, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya told Lok Sabha on Friday.

Elaborating on the steps taken or proposed by the government to set up blood banks in each district of the country, Mandaviya said the extant policy norm for setting up blood banks as per National Blood Policy is to have at least one licensed blood bank in every district while avoiding clustering of the blood banks in urban and semi urban areas.

The policy also advocates for a hub and spoke approach towards transfusion services, wherein blood is collected and processed in hubs, which are high volume blood banks and distributed through spokes, which are smaller blood banks and blood storage centres.

"There are 63 districts in the country without blood banks," he said in a written reply in the House.

"Due to various administrative reasons, state governments carve out new districts periodically. However, blood needs of such districts continue to be catered through blood banks in nearby districts and through blood storage centres set up in First Referral Units at Community Health Centres and select Primary Health Centres," Mandaviya said.

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