Now Reading: Over 61,000 patients wait as India’s kidney transplants fall far short
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Over 61,000 patients wait as India’s kidney transplants fall far short
More than 61,600 patients are waiting for a kidney transplant in India, nearly five times the number of transplants performed, a parliamentary standing committee has said. India conducted 11,558 living-donor and 1,918…
More than 61,600 patients are waiting for a kidney transplant in India, nearly five times the number of transplants performed, a parliamentary standing committee has said. India conducted 11,558 living-donor and 1,918 deceased-donor kidney transplants in 2024, while 61,668 patients remained on the waiting list as of February 9.
The committee on health and family welfare tabled its report in the monsoon session of Parliament, highlighting a widening gap between demand and capacity and the continued dependence on living donors. Transplant activity remains concentrated in Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka, leaving access uneven across the country, the report noted.
The committee attributed the shortage to low deceased-organ donation rates, social misconceptions, inadequate awareness and procedural bottlenecks. It has recommended that transplant facilities be expanded to at least three government medical colleges in large states and to one in small states and union territories, and has called for a nationwide behavioural-change campaign and a study into gender disparities, as women made up 63.8% of living donors and men 69.8% of recipients from 2019 to 2023.
Indian Opinion Analysis
India's kidney transplant gap is a long-standing public health crisis, not a new one. The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) was set up in 2015 to coordinate nationwide organ procurement, but its framework remains voluntary, not mandatory. States such as Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have led on deceased-donor transplants through state-level networks like the Transplant Authority of Tamil Nadu, but most of India lacks equivalent infrastructure. The 61,668 waiting list likely undercounts the true need, as many patients in rural areas never reach a transplant centre to be listed. The committee's recommendation to mandate transplant facilities in government medical colleges is a structural fix, but its impact depends on Parliament approving it and states allocating budgets, which varies widely. The next signal to watch is the health ministry's response, expected within the next session of Parliament, which will indicate whether these proposals become policy or stay on record.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
