KOCHI: Actor Mohanlal will be the honorary Goodwill Ambassador of the Mrithasanjeevani programme, the organ donation programme of Kerala Government.
“We have been able to save plenty of lives as it is now possible to transplant several organs, including the heart. However, there is a stark difference in the demand for and supply of organs. Quite often it becomes impossible for those who require organs to meet the appropriate donors. Hence, the presence of a Government administered system to coordinate the process of organ sharing will only help to facilitate it further. Mrithasanjeevani programme was founded with a tag line 'Share organs, Save lives' in realisation of this. Appreciate his kind gesture,” posted Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Facebook after meeting Mohanlal.
A registry of organ donors and organ seekers is being managed as a part of this, called Kerala Network for Organ Sharing (KNOS) which maintains information regarding patients who are in need of organs for transplantations and those who are interested in sharing their organs after death. This helps in maintaining transparency vis a vis organ sharing and is also engaged in creating awareness on organ donation, because of which around 10,000 people have expressed their interest in organ donation and enrolled themselves in the registry.
The Government is hoping to develop KNOS into an organisation that observes and controls the activities concerning organ donation in the state. KNOS, working towards signing an MoU with air service providers to make organ sharing to and from Kerala hassle free as well, will also develop a code of conduct and set of procedures that can facilitate the process of organ donation.
Incidentally, late Rajesh Pillai’s 2011 super hit movie 'Traffic' which highlighted organ transplantation had served as a powerful tool in changing the mindset of people who would not have been influenced by the articles and awareness programmes on organ transplant.
