New Delhi: “Pledge your organs and live a second life by giving a gift of life to others through organ donation. This is the only way one can play second innings even after one’s death,” Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi had said during an awareness campaign on organ donation in 2016. The minister is an active participant in spreading awareness on organ donation, an issue that is not known to many in the state. In line with his support for the cause, Mr Modi decided to have a special stall at his son’s wedding where the guests pledged their organs. The decision was announced on November 30 during the National Organ Donation Week in India.
Minister’s elder son Utkarsh Modi tied the knot on December 3 at the Bihar Veterinary College ground. The stall was put up by an organisation ‘Dadhichi Deh Daan Samiti’, society dedicated to promoting the cause of cadaver organ donation. Banner and pamphlets were distributed to the wedding guests’ inorder to encourage them to donate their eyes, other organs and body. Forms were provided to visitors willing to make a donation. The news was confirmed by the Deputy Chief Minister’s Personal Secretary Shailendra Kumar Ojha.
Ready to find bride for Tej Pratap but 3 शर्तें No dowry,Pledge organ donation & no threatening to disrupt any marriage
— Sushil Kumar Modi (@SushilModi) December 4, 2017
The one of its kind initiative turned out to be a success as more than 150 guests registered for cadaver organ donation and around 300 took an anti-dowry oath.
Also Read: Telangana Sets An Example On National Organ Donation Day 2017. Here’s What The State Is Doing Right
Replacing gifts with organ donation pledges at mass functions like weddings or parties can go a long way in making people well-verse with the whole concept of leasing a new life to someone with a simple act of donation. Last month, a disabled couple in Sonepat took an extra eighth phera to pledge their support for the cause. Their noble deed further encouraged the people present there and nearly 82 guests signed up for organ donation during the ceremony.
In another recent instance, guests at a Gujarati wedding in 2014 queued up to donate blood and pledge their organs. Coming from a family of doctors, the couple had placed a stall where over 370 took an organ donation pledge.
The gap between the demand and supply of organ donation is huge in a country like India where with a population of more than 1.3 billion, the organ donation rate stands at just 0.8 per million. Mass awareness is certainly the need of the hour and it is through these thoughtful initiatives that the topic of organ donation can enter into the mainstream.
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