Organ donation day

National Organ Donation Day

Indian Organ Donation Day is being celebrated every year on November 27 to commemorate the contributions made to society by deceased donors and their families. From 2023, the day is being celerated during August 3 to commemmorate the first successful deceased heart transplant in India on 3rd August 1994.

The objective of the day is to spread awareness among people and to recognize the selfless efforts made towards mankind and re-establish belief in humanity.

Organ donation month in India

The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) has declared July as the month of Organ donation to commemmorate 8th July 1994, when Transplantation of Human Organs Act (THOA), an Act to provide the regulation of removal, storage and transplantation of human organs for therapeutic purposes and for the prevention of commercial dealings in human organs and tisses was enacted in India.

This year under the campaign “Angdaan Jan Jagrukta Abhiyaan” various awareness activities have been organized across the country from city to village level involving all Central Government Ministries/Departments, State/UT Governments/National, Regional and State Organ & Tissue networking organisations/Hospitals / Institutions and Medical Colleges, NGOs and other stakeholders.

Organ donation statistics in India

India ranks third in the world only behind USA and China as per the data available on the Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation (GODT) website. The total number of organ transplants done per year in the country has increased from 4990 in the year 2013 to 15,561 in the year 2022. Similarly, the organ donation rate has increased to about four times as compared to 2012-13. As per estimates, only 0.65 organ donations per million population take place in the country.

As per the 2019 data of the All Institute of Medical Sciences, annually 1.5 to two lakh people require a kidney transplant. But only around 8,000, meaning four percent people get it. Similarly, every year around 80,000 patients require a liver transplant, but only 1,800 eventually get it. Around one lakh patients require corneal or eye transplants annually, but less than half of people get it. Even for a heart transplant, of the 10,000 who need a heart transplant, only 200 matches with donors.

There are only three percent registered organ donors in India. There has been a considerable decline in organ donation in India as well as the entire world due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The main reason behind such less organ donation is the lack of knowledge among people regarding the process of organ transplant. NGOs and public organizations are trying to spread awareness. 

Network of organ donation in India

The network of organ donation, collection and replacement through the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (SOTTOs) at State-Level,  Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (ROTTOs) at Regional Level and National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) at National Level.

To know more, click here.

World Organ Donation Day

13th August is observed every year as World Organ Donation Day to raise awareness on Organ Donation.  The theme for 2024 is "Be the Reason for Someone's Smile Today"

Global Organ donation statistics 

The global database on donation and transplantation represents the most comprehensive source to date of worldwide data concerning activities in organ donation and transplantation derived from official sources, as well as information on legal and organizational aspects.

To access the statistics, click here.