NEW DELHI: A total of 49,745 people in India are waiting for organ replacement in the country as per the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), the Rajya Sabha was informed on Monday.
As per the data available with NOTTO, a total of 15,561 organ transplants took place in the country in 2022, while a total of 4,49,760 organ donors are registered in the country, said Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Bharti Pravin Pawar.
She said the government is taking several steps to expedite the process of organ donation/replacement in the country.
These include the dissemination of information by NOTTO, Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (ROTTOs) and State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (SOTTOs), and the three-tiered structure set up under the National Organ Transplant Program (NOTP).
She said a 24x7 call centre with a toll-free helpline number (1800114770) to provide information has been set up while tele-counseling services to help in coordination for organ donation have also been undertaken.
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Listing the steps the government has taken, she said the ministry has decided to do away with the domicile requirement of the state for registration of patients requiring organ transplantation from deceased donors. Also, as per the new government guidelines, the upper age limit of 65 years for eligibility for registration to receive deceased donor organs has been removed.
Now, a person of any age can register for receiving deceased donor organs.
She also said that a few instances of human organ trade have come to the notice of the health ministry through complaints/media reports.
Under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), 1994 there is a state-level appropriate authority to investigate any complaint of breach of any of the provisions of this Act or any of the rules and take appropriate action.
Accordingly, these cases are forwarded to the concerned state government for investigation and taking action as per the provisions of the Act, she said, adding that the details of such cases are not maintained by the health ministry.