Now Reading: India discards 17.4 lakh blood components despite record 1.58 crore units collected
-
01
India discards 17.4 lakh blood components despite record 1.58 crore units collected
India discards 17.4 lakh blood components despite record 1.58 crore units collected
India discarded over 17.4 lakh blood components in 2025, even as blood collection reached a record 1.58 crore units, according to state-wise data tabled in the Rajya Sabha. Expiry was the leading…
The Story in Brief
India discarded over 17.4 lakh blood components in 2025, even as blood collection reached a record 1.58 crore units, according to state-wise data tabled in the Rajya Sabha. Expiry was the leading reason for discarding blood components, followed by reactive units and other operational reasons, as reported by blood centres through the government's e-Raktakosh portal.
Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest blood collection at 21.6 lakh units and also the highest discard at 2.40 lakh, followed by Maharashtra, Kerala, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. The Union health ministry said it had not received reports of regional blood shortages and that ensuring adequate supply and minimising wastage is primarily the responsibility of state governments.
The Indian Opinion
The health ministry's almost dismissive response to Parliament, no regional shortages, state governments are responsible, glosses over a clear systemic failure. Discarding 17.4 lakh components while praising record collections is like celebrating a bumper harvest while letting a third of it rot. Dr Goyal's point about platelets' five-day shelf life is fair, but that explains only a fraction of the waste. The e-Raktakosh portal is well and good, but data without action is just a spreadsheet. The real test: how many states have adopted the hub-and-spoke model the Centre advocates, and what is their discard rate versus those that have not?
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
