A 15-day blood donation drive began on the occasion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday on Saturday, with Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya donating blood at a camp set up at Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi.
The minister urged citizens to register on the Aarogya Setu app or e-Raktkosh portal to donate blood as part of the 'Raktdaan Amrit Mahotsav', which will be held till October 1 -- National Voluntary Blood Donation Day.
So far, 5,857 camps have been approved across the country and 55,8959 donors have registered, an official said, adding that 4,000 people have donated blood so far.
"Blood donation - great donation! Donated blood under #RaktdaanAmritMahotsav starting today on the birthday of Prime Minister @NarendraModi. It is heartwarming to be involved in #RaktdaanAmritMahotsavumanity. Be a part of this great work too," Mr Mandaviya said in a tweet in Hindi.
According to an official source, the drive aims to collect close to one lakh units of blood in a day, besides raising awareness about the need for regular non-remunerated voluntary blood donations.
One unit translates to 350 ml of blood.
"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others, Mahatma Gandhi. With this spirit, join Raktdaan Amrit Mahotsav beginning on September 17. Every blood donor is a life-saver," Mr Mandaviya had said on Friday.
According to the source, the main purpose of the drive is to create a repository of voluntary blood donors so that those in need can get help on time and minimise the need for replacement blood donation.
Every blood bank is being encouraged to organise at least one blood donation camp as part of the mega drive.
There are more than 3,900 blood banks in the country with adequate storage and processing capacity.
So far, 3,600 blood banks have been linked with the e-Raktkosh portal and efforts are on to rope in the remaining ones, the source said.
Healthy people have about five to six litres of blood in their body and one can donate blood after every three months, an official said.
The shelf life of the donated blood is 35 to 42 days. The blood is also processed into components like plasma, red blood cells and platelets. Frozen plasma can be used for up to a year, while red blood cells can be used for up to 35-42 days. Platelets need to be used within five days, the official added.
All ministries and departments of the Centre, states and Union territories, non-government and community-based organisations and other stakeholders will be involved in the event.
States have been requested to disseminate information about the drive to all medical colleges, hospitals, healthcare organisations, blood banks and other stakeholders.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
