India Achieves Landmark Milestone of 5 Lakh Organ Donation Pledges : GS TIMES IAS-PCS

India has recorded over 5 lakh organ donation pledges, reflecting growing public awareness and commitment towards organ and tissue donation, providing hope to thousands of patients awaiting transplantation.

Legal Framework

Organ transplantation in India is governed by the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), 1994, enacted in 1994 and amended in 2011.
Objectives:
- Regulate the removal, storage, and transplantation of human organs and tissues for therapeutic purposes.
- Prevent commercial trade in human organs and tissues.
Since health is a State subject, States/UTs must adopt the Act for its implementation.
Registration and regulation of transplant hospitals are carried out by the respective State/UT governments.

National Organ Transplant Programme (NOTP)

The Government of India is implementing the National Organ Transplant Programme (NOTP), a Central Sector Scheme, to:

Strengthen organ transplant infrastructure.
Increase public awareness on organ donation.
Improve access to transplantation services.

Under the programme:

Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisations (ROTTOs) and State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisations (SOTTOs) have been established across several States and UTs to coordinate organ donation and transplantation.

‘One Nation, One Policy’ for Organ Donation

The Government has introduced a “One Nation, One Policy” approach to make organ transplantation more equitable by:

Removing the domicile requirement for registration of patients seeking deceased-donor organs, enabling registration in any State.
Eliminating the upper age limit of 65 years for receiving deceased-donor organs, allowing eligible persons of any age to register.

Financial Support

To improve affordability of organ transplantation:

Financial assistance of up to ₹15 lakh is provided under the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi for kidney, liver, heart, and lung transplants for eligible poor patients.
Post-transplant support of up to ₹10,000 per month is provided to meet medical expenses.
Kidney transplantation is also covered under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).

Significance

Expands access to life-saving transplants.
Promotes equitable organ allocation across states.
Discourages illegal organ trade through a robust regulatory framework.
Contributes to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by improving access to advanced healthcare services.

Source: PIB

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