Berhampur: Odisha Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling on Wednesday said enlivening others in the aftermath of one’s death through organ donation is a higher order of noble acts.
He said this while addressing an event organised here on the occasion of World Organ Donation Day.
Paying homage to the souls of the organ donors and their family members, the minister said, “Because of your noble acts, Odisha has been honoured at the national level as an emerging state in organ donation. Your donations have not only saved the lives of others but also have brought honours to our motherland Odisha.”
Welcoming the immediate family members of the organ donors, Health and Family Welfare Secretary Aswathy S said that words fail to describe the humanitarian acts and courage of the organ donors and their family members.
One organ donor could save the lives of eight people in critical stages of their lives. Even one organ donor through tissue donation could provide relief to around 50 people, she said.
The secretary expressed her gratitude to the families of the donors on behalf of the people of Odisha.
To mark the occasion, Mahaling, on behalf of the government of Odisha, conferred the Suraj Award on 24 organ donors, who were posthumously received by their immediate family members.
The award was associated with a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh to each family.
The immediate family members of the organ donors were also honoured by the respective collectors of their districts after the token distribution of the awards by the minister here.
The state government instituted the Suraj Award in 2020 for the organ donors after Suraj Behera from Ganjam district sustained critical injuries in a road accident and was declared brain dead by doctors, following which his relatives decided to donate his organs. Their decision helped save the lives of six people.
Commemorating their inspiring humanitarian act, the Suraj Award is being presented to organ donors and organisations promoting organ donation in Odisha every year on August 13 on the occasion of World Organ Donation Day since 2020.
The last rites of the deceased donors are being performed with full state honours.
Meanwhile, family members of a 42-year-old woman, Minati Sahu, donated her body and eyes to the government-run MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur after her death in a private hospital at Bhubaneswar on Tuesday due to multiple ailments.
Her husband, Kailash Chandra Sahu, said, “We had pledged to donate our bodies after death to the medical college for study purposes in 2020. Today, we have donated the body to the medical college,” he said.
It will be helpful to the medical college students for their studies and research, said Prof Sagar Prusty, Department of Anatomy, at the medical college.
PTI
