VIJAYAWADA: NTR Memorial Trust opened its new blood bank in Vijayawada on Friday, with Managing Trustee Nara Bhuvaneswari inaugurating the facility and calling every blood donor a lifesaver.
Addressing the gathering, Bhuvaneswari said blood donation is not just charity but a lifeline, and the new blood bank is a bridge between patients in need and the gift of life. She said the NTR Trust building in Vijayawada will stand as a symbol of service, trust and reassurance.
Recalling NTR’s vision, she said he considered public welfare integral to his life and wanted the upliftment of ordinary people. To carry forward his ideals, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu established NTR Memorial Trust, which has been working for 29 years in healthcare, education, women empowerment, livelihood and safe drinking water.
On healthcare initiatives, she said Sanjeevani mobile clinics and NTR Arogya Rathams are taking free medical consultations and medicines to poor, tribal and remote areas across both Telugu states. Under NTR Sujala, the Trust has set up RO plants for safe drinking water.
On women empowerment, she said Trust focuses on confidence and self-reliance beyond training, and through Stree Shakti Handicrafts Store provides market linkage for women-made products. The Trust has also assisted people during floods, cyclones and Covid-19.
Highlighting the need for thalassemia patients, Bhuvaneswari said children with thalassemia need regular transfusions and families face constant anxiety over timely safe blood. The Trust launched a free blood programme for thalassemia children in Hyderabad last year and through its Thalassemia Care Centre provides free transfusions, filters and medicines. She announced a similar thalassemia care centre will soon come up in Vijayawada.